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Title: Wisdom's Daughter
Author: H. Rider Haggard
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Title: Wisdom's Daughter
Author: H. Rider Haggard
The Life and Love Story of
She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed
DEDICATION
In bygone years the books "She" and "Ayesha" were dedicated to
Andrew Lang. Now, when he is dead, this, the last romance that
will be written concerning "/She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed/," is offered
as a tribute to his beloved and honoured memory.
Ditchingham, 1922.
EDITOR'S NOTE
What was the greatest fault of Ayesha, /She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed/?
Surely a vanity so colossal that, to take one out of many
examples, it persuaded her that her mother died after looking upon
her, fearing lest, should she live, she might give birth to
another child who was less fair.
At least, as her story shows, it was vanity, rather than love of
the beauteous Greek, Kallikrates, that stained the hands of She
with his innocent blood and, amongst other ills, brought upon her
the fearful curse of deathlessness while still inhabiting a sphere
where Death is lord of all. Had not Amenartas taunted her with the
waning of her imperial beauty, eaten of the tooth of Time, never
would she have disobeyed the command of her master, the Prophet
Noot, and entered that Fire of Immortality which she was set to
guard.
Thus it seems that by denial she would have escaped the net of
many woes in which, perchance, she is still entangled and of
Ayesha, Daughter of Wisdom yet Folly's Slave, there would have
been no tale to tell and, from her parable of the eternal war of
flesh and spirit there would have been no lesson to be learned.
But Vanity--or was it Fate?--led her down another road.
The Editor.
WISDOM'S DAUGHTER
INTRODUCTORY
The manuscript of which the contents are printed here was discovered
among the effects of the late L. Horace Holly, though not until some
years after his death. It was in an envelope on which had been
scribbled a direction that it should be forwarded to the present
editor "at the appointed time," words that at first he did not
understand. However, in due course it arrived without any accompanying
note of explanation, so that to this hour he does not know by whom it
was sent or where from, since the only postmark on the packet was
London, W., and the address was typewritten.
When opened the package proved to contain two thick notebooks, bound
in parchment, or rather scraped goat or sheepskin, and very roughly as
though by an unskilled hand, perhaps in order to preserve them if
exposed to hard usage or weather. The paper of these books is
extremely thin and tough so that each of them contains a great number
of sheets. It is not of European make, and its appearance suggests
that it was manufactured in the East, perhaps in China.
There could be no doubt as to who had owned these notebooks, because
on one of them, the first, written in red ink upon the parchment cover
in block letters, appears the name of Mr. Holly himself. Also on its
first pages are various memoranda of travel evidently made by him and
no one else. After these follow sheet upon sheet of apparently
indecipherable shorthand mixed up with tiny Arabic characters. This
shorthand proved to belong to no known system, and though every effort
was made to decipher it, for over two years it remained unread.
At length, when all attempts had been abandoned, almost by chance, it
was shown to a great Oriental scholar, a friend of the Editor, who
glanced at it and took it to bed with him. Next morning at breakfast
he announced calmly that he had discovered the key and could read the
stuff as easily as though it were a newspaper leader. It seemed that
the writing was an ancient form of contracted Arabic, mixed in places
with the Demotic of the Egyptians--a shorthand Arabic and a shorthand
Demotic, difficult at first, but once the key was found easily
decipherable by some six or eight living men, of whom, as it chanced,
the learned scholar into whose hands it had thus fallen accidentally
was one.
So it came about that with toil and cost and time, at length those two
closely written volumes were transcribed in full and translated. For
the rest, they speak for themselves. Let the reader judge of them.
There is but one thing to add. Although it is recorded in notebooks
that had been his property, clearly this manuscript was NOT written by
Mr. Holly. For reasons which she explains it was written with the hand
of SHE herself, during the period of her second incarnation when at
last Leo found her in the mountains of Thibet, as is described in the
book called "Ayesha."
CHAPTER I
THE HALLS OF HEAVEN
To the learned man, ugly of form and face but sound at heart, Holly by
name, a citizen of a northern land whom at times I think that once I
knew as Noot the Holy, that philosopher who was my master in a past
which seems far to him and is forgot, but to me is but as yesterday,
to this Holly, I say, I, who on earth am named Ayesha, daughter of
Yarab the Arab chief, but who have many other titles here and
elsewhere, have told certain stories of my past days and the part I
played in them. Also I have told the same or other stories to my lord
Kallikrates, the Greek, now named Leo Vincey, aforetimes a warrior
after the habit of his race and his forefathers, who for religious
reasons became a priest of Isis, the great goddess of Egypt and, once
I believed, my mother in the spirit. Also I have told these or
different tales to one Allan, a wandering hunter of beasts and a
fighting man of good blood who visited me at Kor, though of this I
said nothing to Holly or to my lord Kallikrates, now known as Leo or
the Lion, because as to this Allan I held it wiser to be silent.
All these stories do not agree together, since often I spoke them as
parables, or in order to tell to each that which he would wish to
hear, or to hide my mind for my own purposes.
Yet in every one of them lay hid something of the truth, a grain of
gold in the ore of fable that might be found by him who had the skill
and strength to seek.
Now my spirit moves me to interpret these parables and set down what I
am and whence I came and certain of the things that I have seen and
done, or at the least such of them as I am permitted to reveal by
those mightier than I of whom I am the servant, as they in their turn
are the servants of others yet mightier than themselves.
Here in these Asian caves I sit, the Hesea of the Mountain, the last
priestess of the worship of Mother Isis upon earth, as aforetime I sat
amid the ruins of Kor in Libya.
At Kor for two thousand years I watched and waited till at length
reborn Kallikrates, whom unwittingly I slew in a rage of jealousy,
came back to me where I had slain him. There, because of the curse
that is on me and him, I lost him again, for in this very place, too,
I was slain most horribly, slain by an excess of life wherewith I
thought to make myself more beautiful even than I was and in striving
to overfill the vase, shattered it to the vilest dust. Thus once more
Fate made a mock of me; once more I lost Kallikrates whom it is my
doom to desire in the flesh and to raise up in the spirit through time
untold.
My soul passed out and on and here for a little while it found a home
masked in the withered shape of an ancient priestess of my worship.
As was foredoomed my lord came back to me and saw the shining soul
within that hideous shape and claimed it with a kiss, as I think the
bravest deed and the most faithful that was ever done by man. In the
magic of that kiss as also was foredoomed, my beauty great again
before his eyes, so that once more I stand a glory upon earth. Now we
are plighted, now, if all goes well, within a year we shall be wed,
aye, within one short year after I have borne him back to Kor and
unsealed the hidden Fire of Life and plunged him in its essence,
giving to him my own gift of undying days.
And yet and yet--who knows the end? He presses me sore, and the
starved woman part of me is passionate and weak and I may yield, and
if his lips touch mine, who can say but that the fire within me will
destroy him, the unfortified, and bring all my plans to dust and
nothingness? I am great, set far above mortals, yet I play against
forces I cannot see, that are greater than I, and it may please them
to snatch the cup from my lips, and once more to overthrow me; for
even though the blood of gods runs in him, as it runs in all of us,
who can stand against their master, Doom, and its decrees? Therefore
I, named Wisdom's Daughter, named Child of Isis, to-night am as full
of fears as any mortal maid craving her lover beneath the moon and not
knowing but that war, or chance, or the vile breath of sickness may
have borne him away into that gulf where all things must be lost--
until they are found again.
From month to month Leo, my lord, hunts upon the mountain after the
fashion of men, and I, Ayesha, brood within the caves after the
fashion of women. Yes, I who am half a goddess still brood within the
caves after the fashion of women who wait and watch. Holly, the
instructed, who loves me, as all men must do, bides here with me in
the caves and we talk together of ancient things whereof the world has
lost count, for he is a learned man skilled in the tongues of Greece
and Rome, and one who thinks and, perchance, remembers.
But yesterday he said to me that I who seemed to know the past and to
whom doors were opened that cannot be entered by human feet, should
write down what I know and have experienced, that in time to come the
world may be the wiser.
This the fancy has taken me to do, though whether I can persevere to
the end, I cannot say. He has given me that wherein I can write. 'Tis
not the old papyrus, but it will serve, and I have pens of reed and
can make ink of various colours, who in the bygone days was no mean
scribe. Also I sleep but little, whose body, filled like a cup with
life, needs small rest, and the long hours of the night pass wearily
for me who lie and brood upon what has been and is to come, searching
the darkness of the future with aching, fearful soul. Moreover, I am
able to write in characters which, with all his learning, Holly cannot
read, I who am not minded that he should know my thoughts and deeds
and betray them to my lord whom they might cause to think the worse of
me.
Why, then, should I write at all? For this reason: in certain matters
I have foreknowledge and my spirit tells me that in a day to come, at
the time appointed, some will guess the secret of my script and render
it into tongues that all may read, so that when, soon or late, upon
the circle of my eternal path, I pass hence to whence I came, and,
like to the Fire-God in the caves of Kor am hid awhile, this record
will remain my monument. Ah! there peeps out the mortal in me, for
see! like any common man or woman I would not be forgot even among the
passing dwellers in a petty world.
Now to my task.
I have a vision of what chanced to my soul before it descended to
dwell on earth, and with it I will begin. Maybe it is but a parable
not to be strictly rendered, a token and a symbol rather than a truth.
Yet of this I am sure that in it there is something of the truth,
since otherwise why through the long centuries did it return to me
again and yet again? Maybe Greece and Egypt had no gods save those
they fashioned for themselves. Holly tells me, as did the Wanderer,
Allan, who also had some smattering of knowledge, that Zeus and
Aphrodite and Osiris and Horus and Ammon are now dethroned with all
their company and lie in the dust like the shattered columns of their
temples, the mock of men who talk of them as the fables of the early
world, so that of all the divinities that I knew, He of the Jews,
although changed of character and countenance, alone is worshipped and
remains.
Doubtless it is so, yet while man lives, always there is God, though
his shapes be many. Always there is the eternal Good, as in the dream
the holy Noot named the ultimate Divine, and behold! it is called
Ammon or otherwise. Always there is Evil and behold! it is called Set
or Baal, or Moloch, or otherwise. Always the stained soul of man seeks
redemption, and he who saves is called Osiris or otherwise. Always
Nature endures and she is called Isis or otherwise. Always the great
world that will not die strains and pulses to new life, and the Life-
bringer is called Aphrodite, or otherwise. And so continually. Where
man is, again I say, there was and is and will be God, or Good--the
Spirit named by many names.
I go to my window-place in this cave-chamber and look out upon the
stars shining countless in the frosty sky and lo! there I see God clad
in one of the most glorious of His garments. I look at the moth
flitting round my lamp or resting on the wall and, by the magic that
is in it, summoning its mate from far, and lo! there I see God in
another of His humbler garments. For God is in all things and
everywhere, and from the great suns down, to Him who sent them forth
and to Whom they return again, all that hath life must bow.
This is the vision wherein I read a parable of eternal truths.
I, Ayesha, daughter of Yarab, not yet of the flesh, but above and
beyond the flesh inhabited the halls of that great goddess of the
earth, a minister of That which rules all the earth (Nature's self as
now I know), who in Egypt was named Isis, Mother of Mysteries.
/Child/, she named me, and /Messenger/; and in that dream or parable,
as a child was I to her, for I drank of the cup of her wisdom and
something of her greatness was in my soul.
The goddess sat brooding in her sanctuary where Spirits came and went
bearing tidings from all lands or emptying at her feet the cups of
offered prayer. About her fell her robes, blue as the sky, and over
the robes hung down her hair dusky as the night, and beneath her bent
brows shone her eyes like stars of the night. In her hand was the rod
of power and the footstool at her feet was shaped like the round
world. There, canopied with light, she sat upon an ebon seat and
brooded while round her beat music like sea waves upon the shore, such
music as is not known upon the earth.
I appeared. I stood before her, I abased myself, I bowed till my
forehead lay upon the ground and my hair swept the dust of the ground.
She touched me with her sceptre, bidding me arise.
"Speak, Child," she said. "What message dost thou bring from the
shores of Nile? How goes my worship in the temples of Isis and are my
servants faithful to my law?"
Then I made answer.
"O Mother divine, I have accomplished my embassy. Unseen, a spirit, I
have wandered through the Land of Egypt. I have visited thy temples, I
have hearkened to the councils of thy priests, I have watched thy
worshippers and read their hearts. This is my report. Thy holy temples
are empty; thy priests neglect thine altars; save a remnant who remain
faithful, thy worshippers bow themselves before the shrines of another
goddess."
"How is this goddess named, O Child of my love and wisdom?"
"She is named Aphrodite of the Greeks, a people who have flowed into
Egypt, also other folk know her as Ashtoreth and Venus. Her sanctuary
of sanctuaries is at Paphos in Cyprus, an island of the sea over
against Egypt. She is the Queen of earthly love and love is the ritual
of her worship, and she makes a mock of thee, O Mother, and of all the
ancient gods, thy brothers and sisters, swearing that thy day and
theirs is done and that she has risen from the sea to rule the world,
and will rule it to the end. Here and there she reveals herself and
conquers by her beauty, making all men to worship her and teaching all
women to follow in her steps and beguile as she does, so that thy very
priests turn to her and thy priestesses break from their vows and
wanton with them."
"All of this I have learned, O Child, and more; yet it was my desire
to hear it from thy lips that cannot lie, since in thee dwells my
spirit. Hearken now! I am minded to be avenged upon these false
Egyptians, and thou shalt be the sword of vengeance wherewith I will
smite them, bringing their ancient glory to the dust and for ever
setting the yoke of bondage on their necks. Aye, I am so minded and it
shall be done, how, I will teach thee afterward. But first, as I have
the power to do, I who under the Strength above me am regent of the
ball of earth, will summon this Aphrodite to my presence here and now,
and bid her speak out her heart to me.
"Hear me, Aphrodite, wherever thou art in earth or heaven. Aphrodite,
I bid thee appear."
Then in vision the Mother rose from her throne. Standing before it,
terrible to see, she beckoned with her sceptre, north and south and
east and west, uttering the secret words of power. Thrice she beckoned
and thrice she spoke the secret words, and waited.
There was a stir at the end of the great hall and a sound of singing.
Behold! floating between the long lines of the flame-clad guardians of
that hall, attended by her subject gods, her maenads and her maidens, a
shape of naked loveliness, came Aphrodite of the Greeks. Veiled in her
curling locks and roped about with gleaming pearls for necklace and
for girdle, she stood before the throne and bowed to the Majesty it
bore, then asked in a laughing voice of music,
"I have heard thy summons, Mother of Mysteries, and I am here. What
wouldst thou of me, Isis, Queen of the World? How can the Sea-born
whose name is Beauty and whose gift is Love, serve thee, Isis, Queen
of the World?"
"Thus, thou who art shameless, thou born of the new gods and fashioned
from the evil that is in the race of men--by lifting thy spell from
off my worshippers. I know thy works. Drunken with desires they flock
to thee in troops and for reward thou givest them the wages of their
sin. Thou layest waste their homes; thou defilest their maidens, thou
turnest men to beasts and makest a mock of them. Thy flowers fade; thy
joys fill the mouth with ashes and those who drink of thy cup suck up
poison in their souls. Thy fair flesh is a rottenness and thy perfumes
are a stench and the incense of thine altars is the reek of hell.
Therefore I command thee, go back to whence thou camest and leave the
world in peace."
"Whither, then, should I go, Mother?" answered Aphrodite with her
silvery laugh, "save into thy bosom, whence indeed I sprang, seeing
that thou art Nature's self and I am thy child. Stern is thy law and
sweet, yet without me thou wouldst have none over whom to rule. Aye,
without me would no child be born and not even a flower would blow.
Without me thou wouldst rule a wilderness with but the wisdom of which
thou boastest to keep thee company. Hearken! We are at war and in that
war I shall be conqueror, for I am eternal and all life is my slave,
because my name is Life. Get thee to thy heavens, Isis, and rule there
with Osiris, Lord of Death, but leave me the living. Soon their day is
done and they pass beyond my spells into thy dominion. There treat
them as thou wilt and be content, for then I have no more need of
them, nor they of me. Why of a sudden art thou so wrath with me, whom
thou hast known from the beginning? Is it because I take new names and
set up my altars in thine own Egypt, altars wreathed with flowers,
leaving all desolate thine where prayers are mumbled from starved
hearts and cold hands make the offering of denial? Come now, Mother
Isis, let us play a game and let Egypt be the stake. Thou hast the
vantage there, seeing that for aeons it has bowed to thy laws and thy
yoke has been upon its neck."
"What, then, O Aphrodite, dost thou promise Egypt to which I and those
who rule with me have given greatness, wisdom, and hope beyond the
grave?"
"None of these high things, Mother. My gifts are love and joy; sweet
love and joy in which for a little while all fears are forgot. Small
gains thou mayest think, looking backward to the past and onward to
the future, thou whose eyes are upon eternity. Yet they shall prevail.
Isis, in Egypt thy day is done; there, as elsewhere, thy sceptre
falls."
"If so, Wanton, with it falls Egypt that henceforth shall be the
world's slave. When conqueror after conqueror sets his foot upon her
neck, then let her think on Isis whom she has forsaken, and wailing,
fill her soul with thy swine's food. Lo! I depart, leaving my curse on
Egypt. Have thy little day till before the Judgment seat we settle our
account. No more will I listen to thy falsehoods and thy blasphemies.
Till then, Wanton, look on my majesty no more."
So in that vision spoke the Mother and was gone. With her, flashing
like lightnings, went the flame-clad guardians that attend the
goddess, leaving the great place empty save for Aphrodite and her
throng, and for the soul of me, Ayesha, who watched and hearkened,
wondering. The Paphian looked around and laughed, then glided to the
vacant throne and seating herself thereon, laughed again, till the
music of her mockery echoing from pillar to pillar, filled all the
temple's halls.
"It is an omen," she cried. "What Isis leaves I take; henceforth her
seat and power are mine. See now my ministers, I queen it here, though
I wear no vulture cap or symbols of the moon, whose brow is better
graced by these abundant locks and whose sceptre is a flower whereof
the odours make men mad. Yes, I queen it here as everywhere, though in
this solemn melancholy fane I lack a subject."
She glanced about her till her glorious, roving eyes fell upon that
spirit which was I.
"Come hither, thou," she said, "and do me homage."
Now in my dream I, that spirit who in the world am named Ayesha, came
and stood before her, saying,
"Nay, I am the child of Isis and to her I bow alone."
"Thinkest thou so?" she answered, smiling and looking me up and down.
"Well, I have another mind. It seems to me that soon thou wilt descend
from this sad realm to the joyous fields of earth, that there thou
mayest fulfil a certain purpose, for such is the fate decreed for
thee. Now, I, Aphrodite, add to that fate and lighten it. Look behind
thee, Spirit that shall be woman!"
I turned and looked, there to behold a shape of beauty that I knew for
Man. So beautiful was he that my breast rose and the life in me stood
still. He smiled at me and I smiled back at him. Then he was gone,
leaving his picture stamped upon my soul.
"This is what I add to that tragic fate of thine, O Spirit that shall
be woman. Take him, the man appointed to thee, who from the beginning
was always thine, and as perchance thou hast done before, in his kiss
forget thy Mother Isis and thy crown of woes."
Thus this vision ends, and though now I, Ayesha, have learned that
Isis, as we knew and named her in the ancient time, is but a symbol of
that eternal holiness which is set above all heavens and all earths, I
say again that, as I believe, in its parable is hid something of the
changeless truth.
CHAPTER II
NOOT THE PROPHET COMES TO OZAL
Such is the vision, such the dream that has haunted me through the
centuries, and brooding over it from age to age, I, Ayesha, doubt not
that in its substance it is true, though its trappings may be fancy-
wrought. At least this I know, that my spirit is the child of immortal
Wisdom, such as once men believed that Isis held, as my undying shape
is born of the beauty that is fabled Aphrodite's gift. At least it is
certain that even before I dipped me in the Fire of Life, the most of
learning and all human loveliness were mine. I know also that it was
my mission to bring Egypt to the dust, and did I not bring it to the
dust, smiting to its heart through proud Sidon, and Cyprus,
Aphrodite's home? And have I not for these deeds borne Aphrodite's
curse, as, because of Aphrodite's yoke laid upon my helpless neck, I
have borne and bear the curse of Isis, I whose destiny it is thus at
once to be the instrument and sport of rival powers whose battle-
ground is the heart of every one of us.
Alas! were my tale known, the world in its haste might judge me hardly
and think that I, who by burning its Phoenician props overturned an
ancient empire, am cruel-natured, or that because I sought the love of
a certain man and in my anger slew him when he turned from me, which
in truth I did not desire to do, that I am wanton and ungoverned. Yet
these things are not so, seeing that it was Fate, not I, that gave
Egypt to the Persian dog (whom in his turn I overthrew) and made of
its people slaves, and my flesh, not I, which after I had tasted of
the Fire that is Nature's Soul, cursed me with passion and its fruits,
perchance because I hated it and would never bow myself to it wholly,
I who followed after purity, desiring not man's love but Wisdom's
gifts and a crown of spiritual gold.
Moreover, I had earthly and righteous warrant to bring about Sidon's
fall and through it that of Egypt, seeing that their kings would have
put me to utter shame and robbed my father of his life, as shall be
told. So, too, I had the warrant of a woman's heart to worship the man
I sought and for the death I brought upon him in my jealous madness my
soul has paid full measure in remorse and tears. Still, since justice
is hard to come by here on the earth, or even in the heaven above, I
know that some would judge me harshly and must bear it with the rest.
Even Holly, and at times my Lord Leo who once was named Kallikrates,
have cherished such thoughts, though their lips dare not utter them,
for I read it in their minds which to me are as an open book.
Therefore never shall Holly, nor my lord either, look upon this
written truth, lest therefrom they might distil some poison of
mistrustful doubt, for it is sure that all men stain the whiteness of
pure verity to the colour of their twisted minds. Therefore, too, I
write it in tongues and symbols that they do not understand, which yet
shall be deciphered in their season.
As I taught Holly long ago in the caves of Kor, and truly, though
afterward for some forgotten reason of my own or to give him food for
thought, I may perhaps have changed my tale, puzzling him with stories
of great Alexander and the rest, by my mortal birth I am an Arabian of
the purest and most noble blood, born in Yaman the Happy and in the
sweet city of Ozal. My father was named Yarab after the great ancestor
of our race, and I, his only child, was named Ayesha after my highborn
mother. Of her, whom I never knew, for she was gathered to the bosom
of whatever god she worshipped but one moon from my birth, this is
said.
At first she would not look upon me, being angered because I was not a
son, but at length at my father's pleading she was prevailed upon to
command that I should be brought to her. When she saw how fair a babe
Heaven had given her, such a babe as had not been known or told of
among our people, she was amazed and put up a prayer that she might
die. This, those who knew her declared, she did for two reasons:--
first because, foreseeing my greatness, she desired that I alone
should hold my father's heart and that of all our tribe, and secondly
because she feared lest, should she live, she might bear other
children whom she would hate when she compared them to my perfectness.
So it came about as, amongst others, my father told me often, that her
prayer was granted and having kissed and blessed me, for a while she
entered into rest.
This is the true story of her end, not the other, which those who
envied me put about in after days, that owing to certain revelations
which came to her at the time of my birth, as to the deeds which I was
doomed to do and the loves and hates which I was doomed to earn, my
mother thought it better to ask death from her gods rather than to
continue in a life which she must live out at my side. This tale, my
father often swore to me when I asked him of it, was as false as the
changeful pictures which are seen at sunset on the desert, and
sometimes at noonday also.
For the rest this beloved father of mine took no other wife while I
was yet a child, fearing lest for her own sake, or her children's, she
should be jealous and maltreat me, and afterward when I became a
maiden, because I would not suffer that another woman should share the
rule of his household with me. As I showed to him, he had servants in
plenty and these should be enough, to which he bowed his head and
answered that without doubt my will was that of God.
Thus it came about that I grew up with my noble father, his adviser
and his strength, and through him, or rather with him, ruled all his
great tribe, who always worshipped me. Be it admitted that from the
first, or at least from the time that I came to womanhood, I brought
him trouble as well as blessing, though through no fault of my own,
but because of the beauty with which, as in those days I believed,
Isis, or Aphrodite, or both of them, had endowed me for their own
divine purposes. Very soon this beauty of mine, also my wit and
knowledge, were noised abroad through all Arabia, so that princes came
from far to court me, and afterward quarrelled and fought, for, being
gentle-hearted, I said a kind word to every one of them and left them
to reason out which was the kindest.
This, for the most part, they did with spears and arrows after the
fashion of violent and insensate men, so that there was much fighting
on my account, which made my father some enemies, because the people
of certain of the princes who were killed swore that I had promised
myself in marriage to them. This, however, I had never done, who
desired to marry no man that I might become a slave, cooped up in a
fortress to bear children that I did not desire with some jealous
tyrant for their father. Nay, being higher-hearted than any of my
time, already I sought to rule the world, and if I must have any
lover, to choose one whom I wished, and, when I wished, to have done
with him.
But at that time I asked no lover who myself was in love--with wisdom.
Knowledge, I saw, was strength, and if I would rule, first I must
learn. Therefore I studied deeply, taking for masters all the wisest
in Arabia who were proud to teach Ayesha the Beautiful, daughter and
heiress of Yarab the great chief who could call ten thousand spears to
his standards, all of his own tribe; and ten thousand more sworn to us
but not of our blood.
I learned of the stars, a deep learning this that taught my soul its
littleness, though it is true that while I studied I wondered, as
still I wonder now, in which of them I was destined to rule when my
day on earth was done. For always from the beginning I knew that
wherever I am, there I must be the first and reign.
Perchance I had learned this aforetime in the halls of Isis who then
to me had seemed so great, though afterward contemplating those stars
in the silence of the desert night, I came to understand that even the
Universal Mother, as men named her in those far days, was herself but
small, one who must fight for sovereignty with Aphrodite and other
gods.
Holly has told me much of what the astronomers in these latter years
have won of Nature's secrets: of how they number and weigh the stars,
and measure to a mile their infinite distance from the earth, and how
assuredly that each of them, even the farthest, is a sun as great or
greater than our own, round which revolve worlds unseen. He has been
astonished also, and affected to disbelieve, when I answered him, that
we of Arabia guessed all these things over two thousand years ago, and
indeed knew some of them. Yet, so it was.
Thus communing with greatness, my soul grew ever greater.
Moreover, I sought other and deeper lore. There wandered a certain
strange man to our town, Ozal, where my father kept his court, if so
it may be called, that is when we were not camping with our great
herds in the desert, as we did at certain seasons of the year after
the rains had caused the wilderness to throw up herbage. This man,
named Noot, was always aged and white-haired, ugly to look on, with a
curious wrinkled face of the colour of parchment, much such a face as
that of Holly will be should he attain to his years. Indeed in this
and other ways he was so like to Holly that often I think that in him
dwells something of Noot's spirit now returned again to earth, as that
of Kallikrates has returned to Leo.
Now this Noot, who came to Egypt none knew whence, for by birth he was
not Egyptian, had been the high-priest of Isis and /Kherheb/ or Chief
Magician in Egypt, one who had much power on earth and still more
beyond the earth, since he was in touch with things divine. Moreover,
he was an honest magician and told the truth even to the kings, as the
gods and his wisdom showed it to him, and this was the cause of his
downfall, for woe betide those who tell the truth to kings or to any
who wield the sceptre of their might. On a certain day Nectanebes, the
first of that name, the Pharaoh of Egypt whom others called Nekht-
nebf, after a victory he had gained over the Persians, was filled with
pride and took counsel with Noot, his Chief Magician, bidding Noot
search out the future and tell him of glories to come to Egypt and to
the Royal House, after he had been gathered to Osiris, that thereon he
might feed his soul.
Noot answered that it was wiser to leave the future to care for itself
and to satisfy his heart with the present and its joys and greatness.
Then the Pharaoh grew wrath and bade him fulfil his command.
So Noot bowed and went, and alone in some tomb or sanctuary drew the
circles, uttered the words of power, and called upon the gods he
served to show him such things as should befall to Egypt and to
Pharaoh's House.
The magic sleep fell upon him and in it appeared the Spirit of Truth
and spoke to him dreadful words of fate and doom. These she bade him
deliver to Pharaoh, but when they were spoken to fly for his life's
sake from Egypt and seek out a maiden called Ayesha, the daughter of
Yarab, the Sheik of Ozal, and with her take refuge since she was an
appointed instrument of Heaven. Moreover, this spirit commanded him to
consult the maiden Ayesha in everything and impart to her all his
gathered learning and the very secrets of the gods that had been
revealed to him, that to any other it would be death to speak.
Now in the morning Noot went into the presence of Pharaoh who rejoiced
to see him, and cried,
"Be welcome, /Kherheb/, the first of all magicians, you that men say
were born beyond the earth, you in whom lives the spirit of Maat,
goddess of Truth. Tell me now what the gods have revealed to you as to
the glories they prepare for the ancient land of Egypt, and the House
of me the Pharaoh who have made her great again, driving out the dogs
of Persians!"
"Life! Blood! Strength! O Pharaoh!" answered Noot, saluting in the
ancient form. "I have heard the word of Pharaoh who commanded me
against my counsel to make divination and to seek to learn of the
future from the gods. Behold! the gods hearkened. Behold! by the mouth
of Maat, Lady of Truth, the goddess of the land where I was born, they
spoke to me in the silence of the night. Thus they spoke. 'Say to
Nectanebes who impiously dares to lift the veil of Time, that because
he has fought for Egypt against the Barbarians who worship other gods,
it is granted to him to die in his bed which shall chance ere long.
Say that after him shall come a usurper whom the Barbarians shall
defeat, so that he dies a slave in the land of Persia. Say that after
him the son of Pharaoh shall wear the Double Crown and be called by
the name of Pharaoh, the last of the true Blood of Egypt who shall
ever sit upon its throne. Say that this son of his is accursed because
he is in league with evil spirits and has worked apostasy, putting
about his neck the chain of Aphrodite of the Greeks and the chains of
Baal and of Moloch which never can be broken. Therefore, though he
make many false offerings, yet is he accursed and the Barbarians shall
overcome him, so that he flees away, nor shall all his magic be a
shield to him. Because of him Egypt shall fall and her cities shall be
burned and her children slaughtered and her temples desecrated, and
never more shall one of her pure and ancient blood hold her sceptre.'
Such is the oracle that the gods have commanded me to speak, O
Pharaoh."
Now when Nectanebes heard these awful decrees of Fate upon him and
upon his son, he trembled and rent his robes. Then rage took him and
he reviled Noot the Prophet, calling him a liar and a traitor, and
saying that he would make an end of him and his prophecies together.
But because they were alone together within a chamber, before he could
summon guards to kill him, Noot, helped of Heaven, fled away out of
the palace and as darkness was falling, mingled with the throng and
could not be found by the soldiers who sought him.
Ere daylight he was far from the city and, disguised, escaped from
Egypt, bringing with him only his /Kherheb's/ staff of power, also the
ancient sacred books of spells or words of strength that were hidden
in his robes. With these he brought, moreover, a little ancient image
of Isis which he made use of in his divination and prayed before by
day and night.
Thus it came about awhile later, one eve when I, the young maiden
Ayesha, stood alone in the desert communing with my soul and drawing
wisdom from the stars, that there appeared before me a withered,
ancient man who, when he saw me, knelt down and bowed to me. I looked
on him and asked,
"Why, aged One, do you kneel to me who am but a mortal?"
"Are you indeed a mortal?" he asked. "Methought that I who am the
head-priest of Isis saw in you the goddess come to earth, and indeed,
Lady, I seem to see the holy blood of Isis coursing in your veins."
"It is true, Priest, that of this goddess whom my mother worshipped I
have dreams and memories and that sometimes she seems to speak with me
in sleep, yet I tell you that I am but a mortal, the daughter of Yarab
the far-famed," I answered to him.
"Then you are that maiden whom I am commanded to seek, she who is
named Ayesha. Know, Lady, that great is your destiny, greater than
that of any kind, and that it is revealed to me that you will become
immortal."
"All who believe in the gods trust to find the pearl, Immortality,
beneath Death's waters, O Priest."
"Yes, Lady, but the immortality that is foretold for you is different
and begins upon the earth, and I confess that I understand it not,
though perhaps it may be an immortality of fame."
"Nor I, Priest. But meanwhile, what would you of me?"
"Shelter and food, Lady."
"And what can you offer for these, Priest?"
"Learning, Lady."
"That I think I have already."
"Nay, Lady Ayesha, not such learning as I can give; the knowledge of
the secrets of the gods; spells that will sway the hearts of kings,
magic that will show things afar and call ghosts from the grave, power
that will set him who wields it upon the pinnacle of worship----"
"Stay!" I broke in. "You are old and ugly! you are tired, your foot
bleeds, you seek protection, and it seems to me that you need food.
How comes it that one who can command so much lore and power is in
want of such things as these that the humblest peasant does not lack,
and must seek to purchase them with flatteries?"
When he heard these words, of a sudden the aspect of that old man
changed. To me his shrunken body seemed to swell, his face grew fierce
and set, and a strange light shone in his deep eyes.
"Maiden," he said in another voice, "I perceive that you are in truth
in need of such a teacher as I am. Had you the inner wisdom, you would
not judge by the outward appearance and you would know that ofttimes
the gods bring misfortunes upon those they love in order that thereby
they may work their ends. Beauty is yours, wit is yours, and a great
destiny awaits you, though with it, as I think, great sorrow. Yet one
thing is lacking to you--humility--and that you must learn beneath the
rods of destiny. But of these matters we will talk afterward.
Meanwhile, as you say, I need food and shelter, which are necessary to
all while still they labour in the flesh. Lead me to your father!"
Without more talk though not without fear, I guided this strange
wanderer to our tents, for at the time we were camping in the desert,
and into the presence of my father, Yarab, who gave him hospitality
after the Arab fashion, but save for the common words of courtesy,
held no converse with him that night.
On the following morning before we struck our camp, however, they had
much speech together, and at the end of it I was summoned to the great
tent.
"Daughter," said my father, pointing to the wanderer who was sitting
cross-legged on a carpet before him after the fashion of an Egyptian
scribe, "I have questioned this learned man, our guest. I discover
from him that he is the First Magician of Egypt, the head-priest also
of the greatest goddess of that land, she whom your mother worshipped.
At least, he says he was these things--but now, having quarrelled with
Pharaoh, that he is nothing but a beggar, which is a strange state for
a magician. Also, according to his tale, Pharaoh seeks his life, as he
declares, because of certain prophecies that he made to him concerning
the fate of Egypt and of Pharaoh's House. It seems that he desires to
abide here with us and to impart his wisdom to you, which wisdom, it
is evident, has brought him to an evil case. Now I ask you, as one
gifted with discretion beyond your years, what answer shall I return
to him? If I keep this Noot here, for that he tells me, is his name,
though of his race and country he will say nothing, perchance Pharaoh,
whose arm is long, will come to seek him and bring war upon us, and if
I sent him away, perchance I turn my back upon a messenger from the
gods. What then shall I do?"
"Ask him, my Father; seeing that one who prophesies evil to the
Pharaoh to his own ruin must be a truthful man."
Then my father stroked his long beard, being perplexed, and inquired
of the wanderer whether he should keep him or send him away.
Noot replied that he thought that my father would do well to send him
away, but better to keep him. He said that he had no revelation on the
matter, though if it were wished he would seek one, but he believed
that although his presence might bring trouble, from his dismissal
would come yet worse trouble. He added that in a vision he had been
commanded by the goddess Isis to find out a certain Lady Ayesha and
become her instructor in mysteries that the purposes of Heaven might
be fulfilled, and that it was ill to flout goddesses whose arms were
even longer than those of Pharaoh.
Now for the second time my father who did nothing great or small
without my counsel, asked my judgment on the matter after I had heard
the words of Noot. I pondered, remembering what the wanderer had
promised to me in the desert, namely, knowledge and the secrets of the
gods, also spells that would sway the hearts of kings, with the gifts
of magic and of power. At length I answered,
"To what end is all this empty talk, my Father? Has not this stranger
eaten of your bread and salt and is it the custom of our people to
drive away from their doors for no fault those to whom they have given
hospitality?"
"True," said my father. "If he were to be sent hence, it should have
been done at once. Abide in my shadow, Noot, and pray your gods to
bring a blessing on me."
So Noot, the priest and prophet, remained with us and from the first
day of his coming, opened out to my eager eyes all the scrolls of his
secret lore. Still it is true that he brought to my father, not
blessing but death, as shall be told, though this did not come for
many moons.
Meanwhile he taught and I learned, for his knowledge flowed into my
soul like a river into the desert and filled its thirsty sand with
life. Of all that I learned from him, because of the oaths I swore,
even now it is not lawful that I should write, but it is true that in
those years of study I grew near to the gods and wrested many a secret
from the clenched hands of Nature.
Moreover, though as yet I did not take the vows, I became a votary of
Isis, as Noot, her high-priest, had authority to make me, and one of
the inner circle. Yes, I determined even then that I would forswear
marriage and all fleshly joys and make to Isis the offering of my
life, while she through her priest vowed to me in return such power
and wisdom as had scarce been given to any woman before me.
Thus the time went by till at length fell the blow and I--for all my
wisdom--never heard Aphrodite laughing behind her veil. Nor indeed did
Noot, but then he was an old man, who, as I drew out of him, save
those of his mother, had not once touched a woman's lips. All learning
was his, but it seemed that in his search for it there were some
things he had passed by. At least so I believed, or rather half-
believed, at this time, but as I learned afterward, there are matters
upon which even the most holy think it no shame to lie, since in the
end Noot confessed to me that in his youth he had been as are other
men. Also I think that he heard the laughter of Aphrodite, though I
did not. However these things may be, as I was to discover afterward,
Mother Isis is a stern mistress to whoever looks the other way.
Also, although Noot told me much, he hid more. Not for many a year was
I to learn that he was a citizen of the ancient, ruined land of Kor,
and the only one who knew the fearful mystery it hid, which in a far
day to come he was commanded to reveal to me, Ayesha, and to no other
man or woman. Nor did he tell me that it was the purpose of Heaven
that under her other shape and name of Truth I should again establish
the worship of Isis in that land and once more make of it a queen of
the world. Yet these things were so and therefore was he sent to me
and for no other reason. Therefore was he commanded to reveal the doom
of Egypt to Nectanebes, that this Pharaoh in his wrath might drive
him, a wanderer, to our tents at Ozal there to dwell for years and
instruct me, the chosen, in all things that I must learn, so that when
at last the appointed hour dawned, I might be fitted for my mighty
task.
But all this while Aphrodite laughed on behind her veil!
CHAPTER III
THE BATTLE AND THE FLIGHT
In the end trouble came upon us thus. As I have said already, my
beauty was the talk of men throughout Arabia, and of women also, who
were jealous of it, since those who travelled in caravans bore its
fame from tribe to tribe and those who sailed upon the sea took up the
report and carried it to distant shores. But now to this tale was
added another, namely that the wearer of so much loveliness was also a
vessel into which the gods had poured all their wisdom, so that there
were few marvels which she could not work and little or nothing that
she did not know. It was added, truly enough, that the channel through
which this wisdom flowed into her heart was a certain Noot who
aforetime had been /Kherheb/ in Egypt and high-priest of Isis.
Presently this tale, carried by the mariners, came to the ears of the
Pharaoh Nectanebes in his city of Sais, who knew well enough that Noot
was the prophet whom he had driven from the land and whom by now he
desired to have back again, for his inspired counsel's sake.
The end of it was that the Pharaoh sent an embassy to my father,
Yarab, demanding that I should be given to him or to his son, the
young Nectanebes, I know not which, in marriage, and that Noot should
return to Egypt as my guardian, and there be reinstated in all his
offices.
My father answered, speaking with my voice, that least of anything did
I desire to become one of the women of Pharaoh, a man already near the
grave, or even of Pharaoh's son, I who was a free-born Arabian, and
that as for Noot, his head felt safer on his shoulders in Ozal where
he was an honoured guest, than it would at Pharaoh's court.
These words Nectanebes took ill, so ill indeed that, for this and
other reasons of policy, he sent an army to invade Yaman the Happy,
and to capture me and kill Noot, or drag him away to Egypt in chains.
Of all these plans we had warnings, partly through the priests of Isis
in Egypt who still acknowledged Noot as their head, although another
had been raised up in his place and filled his office, and partly
through dreams and revelations that came to him from Heaven. Therefore
we made ready and gathered in great strength to fight against Pharaoh.
At length his hosts came, borne for the most part in ships of Cyprus
and of Sidon whereof at that time the kings were his allies, or rather
vassals.
They landed upon a plain by the seashore and watching from our hills
beyond, we suffered them to land. But that night, or rather just
before the following dawn when their camp was still unfortified, we
poured down upon them from our hills. Great was the fray! for they
fought well. I led the horsemen of our tribe in this, my first battle,
and by the light of the rising sun charged again and yet again into
the heart of the hosts of Pharaoh, having no fear since I knew well
that none could harm me.
There was a certain company of Greeks, two thousand of them perhaps,
who served Pharaoh, and in the centre of them was his general, which
company stood firm when the others fled. Thrice we attacked it with
the horsemen and thrice were beaten back. Then my father came to my
aid with his picked kinsmen mounted upon camels. Again we charged and
this time broke through. Those about Pharaoh's general saw me and
strove to make me captive, hoping to carry me back to him, whatever
happened to the host. They surrounded me, one caught the bridle of my
horse. Him I slew with a javelin, but others snatched at me. Then I
cried to Isis and I think that she clothed me in some garment of her
majesty, since foes well away in front of me, calling out--
"This is a goddess, not a woman!"
Yet I was cut off, ringed round by them, for all my companions were
slain or driven back.
They pressed in on me to take me living, till I was hedged in with a
ring of swords. My father appeared mounted on his swift white
dromedary that was called Desert Wind, followed by others. They broke
through the ring, and there was a fierce fight. My father fell,
pierced by the spear of the general of the Egyptians. I saw it and,
filled with madness, I charged at that general and drove my javelin
through his throat, so that he fell also. Then a cry went up and the
host of Pharaoh melted away, flying for the ships. Some gained them,
but the most remained dead upon the shore or were taken captive.
Thus ended that battle and such was the answer that we of Ozal sent to
Pharaoh Nectanebes. Therefore it was also that because of the death of
my beloved father at their hands I hated Egypt, and not only Egypt but
Cyprus and Sidon in whose ships her hosts had been borne to attack us,
yes, and swore to be avenged upon them all, which oath I kept to the
full.
Now my father being dead, I, the daughter of Yarab, became ruler of
our tribe in his place with Noot for my counsellor. For certain years
I ruled it well. Yet troubles arose--in this fashion. By now the fame
of my glory and loveliness had spread through all the earth, so that,
more even than before, I was beset with demands for my hand from
chiefs and kings who went well-nigh mad when I refused them. In the
end, being brothers in their grief because I would have none of them,
I whom they called by the names of Hathor and Aphrodite and other
goddesses famed for beauty according to their separate worships, they
made a great conspiracy together and sent envoys bearing a message.
This was the message:--
That unless my people would give me up so that my husband might be
chosen from among their number by the casting of lots, they would join
their armies together and fall upon us and kill out our tribe so that
not one remained to look upon the sun, save myself alone, who should
then be the reward of him who could take me.
Now when I heard this I was filled with rage and having caused those
messengers to be scourged before me, sent them back to their masters
bearing my defiance. But when they were gone, the elders of the tribe
came to me and said through their spokesman,
"O Daughter of Yarab, O Ayesha the Wise and Lovely, we adore you as
one beyond price. Yet it is true that we love our wives and children
and desire to live, not to die. How can we who are but few stand
against so many kings? We pray you, therefore, Ayesha, to choose one
of them to be your husband, for then because of jealousy doubtless
they will destroy each other and we, your servants, shall be left in
peace. Or if you will not marry, then we pray you to hide your beauty
elsewhere for a while, so that the kings do not come to seek it here."
I hearkened and was angry because of the cowardice of this people who
set their own welfare about my will and refused to fight with those
who threatened me. Still, being politic, I hid my mind and said that I
would consider and give them an answer on the third day. Then I took
counsel of Noot and together we made divinations and prayed to the
gods, but most of all to Isis.
The end of it was that before the dawn on the second day a small
caravan of five camels might have been seen, had there been any to
watch, leaving the city of Ozal and heading for the sea.
On the first of those camels sat an old merchant. On the second his
wife or his daughter, or his woman, heavily veiled. On the three
others was his merchandise. Woven carpets it seemed to be, though if
opened, those carpets would have proved to be filled with a very great
treasure in gold and pearls and sapphires and other gems, which for
generations had been gathered together by my father, Yarab, and those
who went before him out of the profits of their trade and of their
flocks and herds, and hid away against the time of need.
That merchant was Noot the priest and prophet, and that woman was I--
Ayesha. That treasure was mine and the camels were led by certain men
who had served my father and now served me, being sworn to me by
secret oaths that might not be broken.
We gained the sea and took ship to Egypt in a vessel that I had caused
to be prepared. Yes, before we were missed the coast of Arabia was
behind us, since I had given it out that I had gone to a secret place
to consider of my answer to the elders of the people. As I heard
afterward, when it was known that I had turned my back on them, there
were woe and lamentations in every household of the tribe.
Understanding what they had lost the men among them beat their breasts
and wept, though it is said that some of the women rejoiced, because I
outshone them all and they were jealous of me.
Afterward the kings and chiefs of whom I have spoken descended upon
them to seek me, whereupon my people swore that I had been changed
into a goddess and gone up into heaven. Some believed this, declaring
that they had always held me to be more than mortal, but others of a
coarser, common mind declared that I had been hidden away, and falling
on the tribe, dispersed it, seizing many and selling them into
slavery.
Thus then did the children of Yarab pay the price of their treachery
to me, though I have heard that afterward once more they became a
great people under the rule of some baseborn grandson of my father,
and worshipped me as a guardian goddess from generation to generation,
having come to believe that I was not a woman, but a spirit whom the
gods sent to dwell with them for a while.
So Noot and I came safely to Naukratis, a Grecian city upon the
Canopic mouth of the Nile, and there abode disguised as a merchant and
his daughter trading in precious stones and other costly wares, and
thus adding to my wealth, though of this there was little need, since
already it was great.
It was here that for the first time I went veiled in the Eastern
fashion, in order to hide my beauty from the eyes of men.
Under cover of this trade I and Noot lived for two years or more while
I studied the lore and language of the Egyptians, learning to read
their picture-writing which the Greeks call hieroglyphs, and mastering
their history. Also I perfected myself in the Grecian tongue and read
the works of their great writers as well as those of the Romans.
Moreover, I learned other things, since at the beginning of the year
Nectanebes, the Pharaoh who had sought me in marriage, being now dead,
and Egypt for a while in the hands of the usurper Zehir, who some say
was his son born of a concubine, we travelled up the Nile disguised
and came to the ancient city of Thebes. This we did slowly, stopping
at every great town, where we received the hospitality of the head
priests of the various gods, Ammon, Ptah, and the rest, since to these
priests Noot by secret signs revealed himself. Indeed the news of our
coming was passed on before us so that always we found some waiting to
welcome us who, once within the temple walls, were treated like the
greatest, although we were garbed as humble travellers. All of these
priests we found full of rage, both because the gods of the Greeks,
and even of the Persians and Sidonians, were being set above their
own, and still more for the reason that their revenues were seized and
used to pay Grecian mercenaries, so that they who had been very rich
were now poor and the gods lacked their offerings, nor could their
holy temples be repaired.
Of all these things I took note whose heart was set upon one thing
only,--to bring about the fall of the Egyptians and their allies that
had slain my father whom I loved, as indeed I was fated to do.
Therefore by a word here and a word there I blew the anger that
smouldered in them to flame, hinting of rebellion and the setting up
of a new dynasty in Egypt, of which at that time I thought to be the
first, a priestess-queen, Isis-come-to-Earth. Of this plan I hinted
also through the mouth of Noot, nor was it ill received, since already
those priests to whom he had told my history and the revelations that
had come to him concerning me, looked on me as something more than
woman. Could a mortal maid, they asked, have so much beauty and so
much learning; was I not in truth a goddess clothed in woman's flesh?
Only on the road I purposed to tread there was this stumbling block,
that each of those high-priests desired that he himself, or at least
one who worshipped /his/ god, were it Ammon or Osiris or Ptah, or
Khonsu, should be the Pharaoh of that new dynasty. For they were
jealous each of the other and could not agree together, as is common
among rival priests.
We passed on to Thebes where I saw the wonders of the mighty temples
which stood there reared by a hundred kings, which Holly tells me now
are but ruins, though the great hall of columns among which I used to
wander still stands in part. Also I crossed the Nile and visited the
tombs of the Pharaohs.
Standing beneath the moon in that desolate Valley of Dead Kings, for
the first time, I think I came to know all the littleness of Life and
of the vanities of earth. Life, I saw, was but a dream; its ambitions
and its joys were naught but dust. Those kings and those queens, some
of them had been very great in their day; the people worshipped them
as gods and when they stretched out their sceptres, the world
trembled. And now what were they? But names, if so much as a name
remained of them.
I saw a great queen whose tomb some while before had been broken into
by robbers, Persians or Greeks I was told. They had unrolled her mummy
and stripped her of her royal ornaments and there she lay, she in whom
had centred all the world's pomp, a little black and withered thing,
grinning at us from the dust, like a dead ape, a sight so strange and
unhuman that the priest who guided us, a coarse fellow, broke into
laughter. I remembered that laugh and afterward paid him back for it,
though he never knew whence his misfortune came.
I, Ayesha, have many sins to my count and at that time was full of
faults, as perchance still I am to-day. Thus I was proud of my beauty
and my genius which were given to me above any other woman; passionate
and revengeful, too, and led on by ambitions. Yet this I swear by all
the gods of all the heavens, that ever in my secret self I have set
the spirit above the flesh and desired to attain to another glory than
that of earth. From the flesh came my sins, because it was begotten of
other flesh and the flesh is sin incarnate. Yet my soul sins not,
because it comes from that which is sinless and, its tasks
accomplished here, laden with knowledge and purified by suffering, to
this holy fount at last it shall return again. At the least such are
my faith and hope.
So it came about that there in the Valley of Dead Kings I swore myself
to the worship of God (since all the gods are one God) and to use the
world as a ladder whereby I might climb nearer to His throne.
Thus I swore with old Noot for witness, noting that he shook his wise
head and smiled a little at the oath. For if I forgot Aphrodite and
the flesh, he remembered them, or perchance he to whom the Future
spoke already guessed something of my fate which it was not lawful
that he should tell. Also at that time I knew nothing of that
everlasting King of Fire who dwells in majesty beneath the rocks of
Kor, nor of his evil gifts. Least of all did I know that Noot himself
was by inheritance and appointment the guardian of the Fire.
From Thebes we passed up Nile to Philae on the Isle of Elephantine,
where Mother Isis had her holy sanctuary, and Nectanebes, the first of
that name, he who had sought me as a wife and now was not long dead,
had begun to build a temple of surpassing beauty to the goddess, which
temple was completed in my time by his son, the second Nectanebes, he
with whom I had to do and brought to nothingness.
Here I abode a year making final preparations utterly to vow myself to
the goddess. I kept the fasts, I purified my heart, I passed the
trials and at length alone I seemed to die and descended into the gulf
of death and fled through the Halls of Death pursued by terrors, till
I saw, or dreamed I saw, the goddess in her glory and fell swooning at
her feet. More I may not say, even now that over two thousand years
have passed since that holy hour of fears and victory, save this one
thing which indeed has come to pass. When I arose from that swoon
certain words were written on my mind, though whether the goddess whom
I seemed to see or some spirit spoke them to me I do not know. These
were the words:--
"Far to the south in this land of Libya beyond the region of Punt, is
an ancient city, whence my worship came ere Egypt had a people.
Thither, Daughter of Isis, shalt thou bear it back and there shalt
thou blow upon it with thy breath and keep alive the holy spark that
at last is doomed to die upon the earth amidst those snows which as
yet no southern foot has trod. There, Daughter, in that fallen and
deserted land, my prophet Noot shall welcome thee. There shall he
guard the Door of Life which of mortal women thou alone shalt pass.
There shalt thou stain thy hands with blood, and there in solitude
amidst the tombs, with tears from thy repentant eyes, shalt thou wash
thy sin away. Yet of the seed that thou sowest in fire in the womb of
the world, thou shalt reap the harvest upon the mountain tops amidst
the snows."
Such were the words branded upon my memory when I awoke from the swoon
after the night of trial. Later I repeated them to Noot, my Master,
praying him to read their meaning, which either he could not or would
not do. He said, however, it was true that far to the south there
stood a great city, now a ruin sparsely peopled, whence came the first
forefathers of the Egyptians thousands of years before the pyramids
were built. He said also that he knew the road to that city by sea and
by land, though how he knew it he would not tell. Nor would he
interpret the rest of those dream words. Yet, when I harassed him with
questions he said carelessly, as one who hazards a guess, that
perchance the goddess meant that it would be my lot after its fall or
corruption in Egypt, to bear back her worship to this its earlier home
and there establish a great nation of her servants. As to the "Door of
Life" that I alone could pass, of which he was named the Guardian, and
the "northern snows," he declared that he knew not what was meant by
them, but doubtless these things would be made clear in their season.
So he spoke somewhat lightly, like one who humours a frightened child,
as though he would make me think that I had but dreamed a dream. This
indeed I came to believe, as is the fashion of mankind concerning
things that they cannot see or handle, however real those things may
appear in the hour of their experience. For these in the end always we
write down as dreams, such as haunt us by the thousand in our sleep.
Yet now that two thousand years have gone by, I know that this dream
was true. For is there not a city called Kor and was I not there
doomed to find the Door of Life whereof Noot was guardian? And did I
not sin there and from generation to generation wash the blood from
off my hands with tears of bitterest repentance, and afterward expiate
that sin in loss and shame and agony? And lastly do I not reap that
harvest of tears upon the mountain tops amidst the northern snows
whither the spirit bore me, still holding in those hands the embers of
the worship of that regnant Good who to us of the ancient world was
known as the Universal Mother to whom I swore myself in Philae's
temples?
But enough of these things now; let them be spoken of in their season.
CHAPTER IV
THE KISS OF FATE
There came a man to Philae. Watching from a pylon top whither I had
gone to pray alone, I saw him land upon the island and from far off
noted that he was a godlike man, clad in armour such as the Greeks
used, over which was thrown a common cloak, hooded as though to
disguise him; one who had the air of a warrior. At a distance from the
temple gate he halted and looked upward as though something drew his
glance to me standing high above him upon the pylon top. I could not
see his face because of the shadow thrown by the great walls behind
which the sun was sinking, but doubtless he could see me well enough,
whose shape was outlined against the veil of golden light that must
have touched me with its glory, though, as that light was behind me,
my face also would be hidden from him. At least he stood a little
while as though amazed, staring upward steadily, then bowed his head
and passed into the temple, followed by men bearing burdens.
Some pilgrim to the shrine, I thought to myself, then turned my mind
to other matters, remembering that with men I had no more to do. Thus
for the first time here in the body, all unknowing, I looked upon
Kallikrates and he looked on me, but often afterward I have thought
that there was a veiled lesson or a parable in the fashion of this
meeting.
For did I not stand far above him, clothed in the glory of heaven's
gold, and did he not stand far beneath in the gloom of the shadows
that lay upon the lowly earth, so that between us there was a space
unclimbable? And has it not been ever thus throughout the centuries,
for am I not still upon the pylon top clad in the splendour of the
spirit, and is he not still far beneath me wrapped with the shadows of
the flesh? And since as yet the secret of the pylon stair is hidden
from him, must I not descend to earth if we would meet, leaving the
light and my pride of place that I may walk humbly with him in the
shadow? And is it not often so between those that love, that one is
set far above the other, though still this rope of love draws them
together, uplifting the one, or dragging down the other?
The man passed into the temple and that night I heard he was a Grecian
captain of high blood, one who though young had seen much service in
the wars and done great deeds, Kallikrates by name, who had come to
seek the counsel of the goddess, bringing precious gifts of gold and
Eastern silks, the spoil of battles in which he had fought.
I asked why such an one sought the wisdom of Isis, and was told that
it was because his heart was troubled. It seemed that he had been
dwelling at Pharaoh's court as a captain of the Grecian guard, and
that there he had quarrelled with and slain one who was a brother to
him, if indeed he were not his very brother. This ill deed, it was
said, preyed upon his soul and drove him into the arms of Mother Isis,
seeking for pardon and that comfort which he could not find at the
hand of any of the gods of the Greeks.
Again I asked idly enough why this Kallikrates had killed his familiar
friend or his brother, whichever it might be. The answer was--because
of some highly placed maiden whom both of them loved, so that they
fought from jealousy, after the fashion of men. For this reason the
life of Kallikrates was held to be forfeit according to the stern
military law of the Grecian soldiers, and he must fly. Also the deed
had tarnished that great lady's name; also his heart was broken with
remorse and hither he came to pray Isis to mend it of her mercy, he
who had forsaken the world.
The tale moved me a little, but again I cast it from my mind, for are
not such things common among men? Always the story is the same: two
men and a woman, or two women and a man, and bloodshed and remorse and
memories which will not die and the cry for pardon that is so hard to
find.
Yes, I cast it from my mind, saying lightly--oh! those evil-omened
words--that doubtless his own blood in a day to come would pay for
that which he had spilt.
For a while, some months indeed, this Grecian Kallikrates vanished
from my sight and even from my thoughts, save when, from time to time,
I heard of him as studying the Mysteries among the priests, having, it
was said, determined to renounce the world and be sworn to the service
of the goddess. Noot told me that he was very earnest in this design
and made great progress in the faith, which pleased the priests who
desired above all things to convert those that served Grecian gods
with whom the deities of Egypt, and above all Isis, were at war.
Therefore they hastened his preparation so that as soon as might be he
should be bound to the Heavenly Queen by bonds that could not be
loosed.
At length his fasts and instruction were completed; his trials had
been passed and the hour came when he must make his last confession to
the goddess and swear the awful oaths to her very self.
Now since Isis did not descend to earth to stand face to face with
every neophyte, it was necessary in this great ceremony that one
filled with her spirit should take her place and as may be guessed,
that one was I, Ayesha the Arab. To speak truth, in all Egypt, because
of my beauty, my learning, and the grace that was given to me, there
was none so fitting to wear her mantle as myself. Indeed afterward
this was acknowledged when, with a single voice, the Colleges of her
servants throughout the land, men and women together, promoted me to
be her high-priestess, and gave me, who aforetime among them was known
by the title of Wisdom's Daughter, the new name of /Isis-come-to-
earth/, or in shorter words, /The Isis/. For my own name of Ayesha I
kept hid lest it should be discovered that I was that chieftainess,
the child of Yarab, who had defeated the army of Nectanebes.
Therefore at a certain hour of the night, draped in the holy robes,
wearing on my brow the vulture cap and the bent symbol of the moon,
holding in my hand the /sistrum/ and the cross of Life, I was
conducted to the pillared sanctuary and seated alone upon the throne
of blackest marble, with the round symbol of the world for my
footstool.
Thus, having learned my part and the ancient hallowed words that I
must say, I sat awhile wondering in my heart whether Isis herself
could be more glorious or more fair. So indeed did the priests and
priestesses who saw me thus arrayed and bent the knee to me as though
I were the very goddess, which in truth many of the humbler among them
half believed.
Thus I sat in the moonlight that flowed from the unroofed hall beyond,
while the carven gods watched me with their quiet eyes.
At length I heard the sound of footsteps whereon there came a
priestess and flung over me the white veil of innocence sewn with
golden stars that until the appointed moment must hide Isis from her
worshipper. The priestess withdrew and, wrapped in the dark, hooded
robe that signified the stained flesh about to be cast away, which hid
all of him so that his face could not be seen, came that tall neophyte
led by two priests who held his right hand and his left. I noted those
hands because they were so white against the blackness of the robe,
and even by the moonlight saw that they were beautiful, long and thin
and shapely, though the palm of one, the right, was somewhat broadened
as though by long handling of the tools of war.
The priests led him to the entrance of the shrine and in hushed
whispers bade him kneel upon a footstool and make his sacrifice and
confession to the goddess as he had been taught to do. Then they
departed leaving us alone.
There followed silence which at length I broke, whispering,
"Who is this that comes to visit the Mother in her earthly shrine and
what is his prayer to the Queen of Heaven and Earth?"
Though I spoke so gently and so low, perhaps because of their very
sweetness, my words seemed to frighten him, or perhaps he believed
that he stood in the very presence of the goddess; at least he
answered in a voice that trembled,
"O holy Queen adored, in the world I was named Kallikrates the comely.
But the priests, O Queen, have given me a new name, and it is, /Lover-
of-Isis/."
"And what have you to say to Isis, O Lover-of-Isis?"
"O Queen eternal, I have to tell my sins and ask her pardon for them,
I who have passed the Trials and am accepted by her servants. If it is
granted, then to her I must make the oath, binding myself eternally to
love and serve her, her and no other in heaven or on earth."
"Set out those sins, O Lover-of-Isis, that my Majesty may judge of
them, whether they can be forgiven or are beyond forgiveness," I
answered in the words of the appointed ritual.
Then he began and told a tale that made me redden behind my veil, for
all of it had to do with women, and never before had I learned what
wantons those Greeks could be. Also he told of men whom he had slain
in war, one of them in the battle against my tribe, in which strangely
enough it seemed he had fought as a lad, for this man was a great
warrior. Of these killings, however, I took no account, because they
had been of those who were the enemies of himself or of his cause.
In stern silence I listened, noting that save for these matters of
light love and fightings, the man seemed innocent enough, for in his
story there was naught of baseness or of betrayal. Moreover, it seemed
that he was one in whom the spirit had striven against the flesh, and
who, however much his feet were tangled in the poisonous snares of
earth, from time to time had set his eyes on Heaven.
At length he paused and I asked of him,
"Is the black count finished? Tell now the truth and dare to hold
nothing back from the goddess who notes all."
"Nay, O Queen," he answered, "the worst is yet to come. I came to
Egypt as a captain of the Grecian guard that watches the House of
Pharaoh at Sais. With me came another man, my half-brother, for our
father was the same, with whom I was brought up and loved as never I
loved any other man, and who loved me. He was a glorious warrior,
though some held that I was more handsome in my person, Tisisthenes by
name, that in my Grecian tongue in which I speak means the Avenger.
Thus he was called because my father, whose first-born he was, desired
that he might grow up to work vengeance upon the Persians who slew his
father named like myself, Kallikrates, the most beauteous Spartan that
was ever born. Foully they slew him before the battle of Plataea,
whilst he was aiding the great Pausanius to make sacrifice to the
gods. This Tisisthenes my brother I killed with my own hand."
"For what cause did you kill him?"
"There was a royal maiden at that court, one fairer than any woman has
been, is, or will be--ask not her name, O Mother, though doubtless it
is known to you already. This lady both of us saw at the same time and
by the decree of Aphrodite both of us loved. As it chanced it was I
who won her favour, not my brother. We were spied upon; the tale was
told; trouble fell upon that royal maiden who, when she should be old
enough, was sworn in marriage to a distant king. To save her name she
made denial, as we must do. She swore there was naught between her and
me, and to prove it turned her face from me and toward my brother. I
came upon them together in a garden. She had plucked a flower which
she gave to him and he kissed the hand that held the flower. She saw
me and fled away. I, maddened with jealousy, smote my beloved brother
in the face and forced him to fight with me. We fought. He guarded
himself but ill, as though he cared nothing of the end of that fray. I
cut him down. He lay before me dying, but ere he died, he spoke:
"'This is a very evil business,' he said. 'Know Kallikrates, my most
beloved brother, that what you saw in the garden between that royal
maid and myself was but a plot to save you both, since thereby I
purposed to take on to my own head the weight of your transgression
against the law of this land, because she prayed it and it was my
wish. This I have done, and for this reason I suffered you to slay me,
though during that fight twice I could have pierced you, because you
were blinded with rage and forgot your swordsmanship. Now it will be
said that you found me pursuing this royal maiden and rightly slew me
according to your duty and that it was I who loved her and not you, as
has been commonly reported. Yet in truth I love her well and am glad
to die because it was to you that her heart turned and not to me; also
because thereby I save both her and you. Yet, Kallikrates, my brother,
the gods give me wisdom and foresight in this the hour of my death,
and I say that you will do well to have done with this lady and all
women, and to seek rest in the bosom of the gods, since, if you do
not, great trouble will come upon you, and through this same curse of
jealousy such a death as mine shall be yours also. Now let us who are
the victims of Fate kiss each other on the brow as we used to do when
we were children, playing together in the happy fields of Greece, from
whom death was yet a long way off, forgiving each other all and hoping
that we may meet once more in the region of the Shades.'
"So we embraced, and my brother Tisisthenes gave up his spirit in my
arms and looking on him I wished that I were dead in his place. Then
as I turned to go the soldiers of our company found me and seeing that
I had slain my brother, would have brought me to trial, not because we
had fought together, but because he was my superior in rank and
therefore I who, being under his command, drew sword on him, by the
law of the Greeks, must die. Yet before I could be put upon my trial,
some of those who loved me and guessed the truth of the business
thrust me out of our camp disguised, with all the treasure that I had
won in war, bidding me hide myself awhile till the matter was
forgotten. O Queen, I did not desire to go; nay, I desired to stay and
to pay the price of my sin. But they would not have it so. I think
indeed that there were others behind, great ones of Egypt, moving in
this matter; at least I was thrust forth, all being made easy for me,
and all eyes growing blind."
Again he paused, and I, Ayesha, clothed as the goddess, asked,
"And what did you then, you who could slay you brother for the sake of
a woman?"
"Then, Divine One, I fled up Nile, where, because of the trouble that
was in the land, Pharaoh's arm could not reach me, nor the arm of the
commander of the Greeks. Tarrying not and without speech with that
high maiden who was the cause of my sin, I fled up Nile."
"Why did you fly up Nile and not back to your own people, O most
sinful man?"
"Because my heart is broken, Queen, and I desired to seek the mercy of
Isis whose law I had learned already and to become her priest. I knew
that those who bow themselves to her may look no more on woman, but
thenceforth must live virgin to the death, and it was my will to look
no more on woman, since woman had stained my hands with a brother's
blood, and therefore I hated her."
Now I, Ayesha, asked,
"What gods did you worship before your heart was turned to Isis, Queen
of Heaven?"
"I worshipped the gods of Greece and first among them Aphrodite, Lady
of Love."
"Who has paid you well for your service, making of you a murderer of
one of your own blood who, before she blinded your eyes, was more to
you than any on the earth. Do you then renounce this wanton
Aphrodite?"
"Aye, Queen, I renounce her for ever. Never more will I offer at her
altars or look on woman in the way of love. If I may have pardon for
my sins, here and now I vow myself to Isis as her faithful priest and
servant. Here and now I blot the name of Aphrodite from my heart; yea,
I reject her gifts and tread down all her memories beneath my aspiring
feet that at last shall bear my soul to peace."
Thus the man spoke in a quivering and earnest voice, and was silent.
Yes, deep silence reigned in that holy place, whilst I, Ayesha,
although it is true that as a woman I misdoubted me of such rash
oaths, as the minister of the goddess, prepared myself to grant pardon
to this seeker in the hallowed, immemorial words, and to open to his
troubled heart the doors of purity and rest eternal.
Then suddenly in that silence clearly I heard the sound of silvern
laughter, soft, sweet laughter that seemed to come from the skies
above and though it was so low to fill the shrine and all the hall
beyond. I looked about me but could see naught. It would seem, too,
that the Greek heard also, for he turned his head and looked behind
him, then once more let it fall upon his hands.
Whence came that sound? Could it be that she of Paphos----? Nay, it
was impossible, and not thus would I be turned from my office, I who
was clothed with the robe and for that hour wielded the might of Isis.
"Hearken, O man, in the world named Kallikrates," I said. "On behalf
of Isis, the All-Mother, goddess of virtue and of wisdom, speaking
with her voice, hearing with her ears, and filled with her soul, I
wash you clean of all your sins and accept you as her priest,
promising you light burdens on the earth and beyond the earth great
rewards for ever. First swear the oath that may not be broken, and
then draw near that I may kiss you on the brow, accepting you as the
slave and lover of Isis, from this day until the moon, her heavenly
throne, shall crumble into nothingness."
Having spoken thus, letting the words fall one by one, slowly as the
tears of the penitent fell upon the ground, I uttered the oath, the
form of which even now I must not write.
It was a dreadful oath covering all things, and binding him who took
it to Isis alone, an oath that if it were forgot wrought upon the
traitor the agelong doom of death in this world and woe in the worlds
to come, till by slow steps, with pierced heart and bleeding feet, the
holy height from which he had fallen should be climbed again.
At length it was finished and he said faintly,
"I swear! With fear and trembling still I swear!"
Then I beckoned to him with the /sistrum/ of which the little shaken
bells make a faint compelling music that already he had learned to
follow, and he came and kneeled before me. There I laid the Cross of
Life upon his head and gave him blessing, laid it upon his lips and
gave him wisdom, laid it upon his heart and gave him existence for
thousands upon thousands of years. All these things I did in the name
and with the strength of Isis the Mother.
Came the last rite, the greeting of the Mother to her child new-born
in spirit, the rite of the Kiss of welcome. At that moment supreme a
light fell on me from above: perchance it came from Heaven, perchance
it was an art of the watching priests; I do not know. At least it fell
upon me illumining my glittering robes and jewelled headdress with a
soft splendour in the darkness of that shrine. At that moment, too, at
a touch my veil fell down, so that the moonlight struck full upon my
face making it mystical and lovely in the frame of my flowing hair.
The priest new-ordained lifted his bent head that I might consecrate
his brow with the Kiss of welcome, and his hood fell back. The
moonlight shone on his face also, his beautiful face like to that of a
sculptured Grecian god, shapely, fine-featured, large-eyed, and
crowned with little golden curls--for as yet he was unshorn; yes, a
face more beautiful than that which I had seen on any man, set above a
warrior's tall and sinewy form.
By Isis! I knew this face; it was that which had haunted me from
childhood, that which often I had seen in a dream of halls beyond the
earth, that of a man who in this dream had been sworn to me to
complete my womanhood. Oh! I could not doubt, it was the same, the
very same, and looking on it, the curse of Aphrodite fell upon me and
for the first time I knew the madness of our mortal flesh. Yea, my
being was rent and shattered like a cedar beneath the lightning
stroke; I was smitten through and through. I, the priestess of Isis,
proud and pure, was as lost as any village maid within her lover's
arms.
The man, too! He saw me and his aspect changed; the holy fervour went
out of his eyes and into them entered something more human, something
more fateful. It was as though he, too, remembered--I know not what.
With a mighty effort of the will, aware that the eyes of the goddess
and perchance of her priests also were upon me, I conquered myself and
with beating heart and heaving breast bent down to touch his brow with
the Kiss of ceremony. Yet, I know not how--I know not if the fault
were his or mine or perchance of both of us--it was his /lips/ I
touched, not his brow, just touched them and no more.
It was nothing, or at any rate but a little thing, in one instant come
and gone, and yet to me it was all. For in that touch I broke my holy
vows, and he, new-sworn to the worship of the goddess, broke his, yes,
in the very act of sacrifice. What drove us to it? I do not know, but
once again I thought I heard that low, triumphant laughter, and it
came into my mind that we were the sport of an indomitable power
greater than ourselves and all the oaths that mortals swear to gods or
men.
I waved my sceptre. The new-made priest arose, bowed and withdrew, I
wondering of whom he was the priest--of Isis or of Aphrodite. The
singing of a distant choir broke out upon the silence, the heirophants
came and led him away to be of their company till his death: the
ceremony was ended. My attendants, arrayed as the goddesses Hathor and
Nut, conducted me from the shrine. I was unrobed of my sacred
panoplies and once more from a goddess became a woman, and as a woman
I sought my couch and wept and wept.
For had I not at the first temptation in my heart broken the law and
betrayed the trust of her who, as then I believed, is and was and
shall be; her whose veil no mortal man had lifted, the Mother of the
sun and all its stars?
CHAPTER V
THE SUMMONS
None knew my fault. Yet I knew, and what is known to one soul is known
to all souls, since one is all and all are one. Moreover, it was known
to That which begets souls, That from which they come and to which
they return again, again to come, as Plato, the great philosopher, who
died before my day, has taught us in his writings. Also it was known
to that accursed priest who was the cause and partner of my crime. I
was overcome; I was eaten up with shame, I who thought myself purer
than the mountain snows, as indeed I was and, in the flesh, to this
hour have remained.
Soon I could no longer bear my torment. To Noot I went, Noot the high-
priest, my counsellor and master, and in a secret place kneeling on my
knees, there I told him all.
He hearkened with a little smile upon his withered face, then
answered,
"Daughter, in your honesty you do but reveal that which I knew--how I
knew it matters not. And now take comfort, since the blame is not
altogether yours, or even that of this new-made priest, whose foot was
caught in the same snare. You worship Isis, as I do, but what is Isis
whom we portray on earth as a woman glorious above all women? Is she
not Nature's self, the universal Mother, the Supreme in whom all gods
and goddesses have a part? She wars on Aphrodite, it is true, yet does
not that mean that in verity she wars upon herself? And are we not as
Isis is, not one but many poured into a single mould, for do we not
all war upon ourselves? Believe me, Daughter, the human heart is a
great battleground where the higher and the lower parts of us fight
with spiritual spears and arrows, till one side or the other wins
victory and hoists the banner of good or evil, or Isis or of Set. Only
out of a struggle comes perfectness; that which has never struggled is
a dead creature from whom little may be hoped. The ore must be melted
in the fire and lo! the most of it is dross, refuse to be thrown away.
Had it never known the fire, there could be no pure gold to adorn the
brows of Heaven, nor even copper and iron to shape the swords of men.
Rejoice, then, that you have felt the hurt of fire."
"Master," I answered, "Lord of Wisdom to whom alone Ayesha bows the
knee, your words are true and comfortable, yet bethink you, and if it
is permitted, interpret me this riddle. I dreamed a dream of the time
before my earthly days--you know it well for I have told it to you. I
dreamed of a place in Heaven and of two goddesses matched against each
other and of a command that was laid upon me to bring woe upon those
who had deserted the one and turned to the other. Now if they were
parts of a single whole, why should this command be laid upon me?"
"Daughter, in your dream you were ordained to be a Sword of Vengeance,
not because the Egyptians turned from one part of the holy Unity to
another part of that Unity, but because they have become corrupt and
faithless, worshipping no gods save themselves and following after
that which is low, not that which is high. Such is my answer, yet of
the truth or the falsehood of that dream I say nothing. Perchance it
was but a dream."
"Perchance, Master. Yet in that dream, true or false, I saw a face,
and lo! a few nights gone I, draped as Isis in the shrine, I saw that
face again and knew it; knew also that with it my fate is intertwined.
What of this?"
"Daughter, who are we that we should read the mysteries of Fate, we
who know not whence we come nor whither we go, nor what we have been,
nor why we are? It may be that you have some mission toward the spirit
that is clothed in the flesh of yonder man. It may be that you are
destined to uplift that spirit, and in so doing yourself to be trodden
down. If so, I say that in the end you shall rise again and bear him
upward with you."
He paused, and I knelt silent, pondering the prophecy, for such I knew
it well to be. Then again he spoke,
"You heard a laughter in the shrine, yet there was no laughter save
that of the evil in your own heart, mocking and triumphant. Such
laughter mayhap you will often hear, but while you can hear it and
repent, be not dismayed. When the ears of the soul grow deaf then
utter loss is near; while they are open, hope remains. Those who still
strive can never wholly fall. Fate rules us every one, yet within the
circle of that Fate power is given to us to work out our redemption. I
have finished. Ask me no more."
"What punishment, Master?" I asked.
"Daughter, this. For a while look no more upon that man. I say for a
while, since with you I hold that his destiny and yours are
intertwined. I have a command for you: that presently you accompany me
hence to lands beyond the seas. Now, go rest, and in rest find
forgetfulness."
So I went, wondering yet comforted, though I knew well that Noot the
Holy had not told me all, no, nor yet the half of what he knew. For
often those to whom the gods give vision are forbid to speak it, lest,
as in the old Hebrew parable, men should eat of the tree of knowledge
and grow like to them. Or perchance they cannot speak it, since it
comes to them in a tongue which may not be rendered in the words that
the passer-by would understand. So indeed it is with me to-day.
Thus it came about that soon I and my master, Noot, left Philae and as
before travelled the Nile disguised. Never since then have my eyes
looked upon that island and its holy fane which Holly, who has visited
it, tells me is now a ruin with stark, Hathor-headed columns standing
here and there amongst the tumbled stones. He says, moreover, that his
people who rule the land to-day purpose to sink it beneath the Nile
that the lands below may be enriched and multiplied. Herein I see an
allegory; the temples of Isis are drowned and the learning they held
is lost in order that more food may grow to feed the common and the
ignorant. Yet to what end, seeing that if there is more food, more men
will come to eat it, all of them common and ignorant, while Isis and
her wisdom are swallowed in the slime. Thus has it ever been in Egypt,
and doubtless elsewhere, for such is Nature's law. Food breeds
multitudes and where carrion is, there are flies, while in the deserts
both are lacking. Yet I think that the deserts and the few that wander
on them beneath the sun and stars are nearer far to God.
Once more disguised as merchants, I and Noot, my master, took ship and
visited far lands to see their state and gather wisdom. We visited
Rome, then breaking her shackles and rising to her greatness. They
were a great people, those Romans that Noot out of his foresight told
me would one day rule the world. Or perhaps it was I who told Noot,
judging them by their qualities; I am not sure. At least I loved them
not, because of their rude natures, their lack of arts and their love
of power and gain. Therefore when I had studied their language and
their politics I passed on.
We came to Greece and tarried there awhile, studying philosophies and
other things. The Greeks I did love, because they were beautiful and
called forth beauty from all they touched. Also they were brave who
defied the Persian might and had they but stood together, might have
queened it on the earth. But they would not, for ever State tore out
the throat of State, so that in the end all were undone and
overwhelmed by a multitude of commoner folk who held Greece before
them, for such was their destiny. Moreover, they worshipped gods made
like themselves, with all the faults of men grown greater and more
vile, and told fables concerning them fit to please children, which I
thought strange in a people that could produce such philosophers and
poets. Yet those gods had come down to them from their fathers, and it
is hard to shake off the yoke of gods until some greater god appears
and breaks it with the hammer of war.
Here in Greece it was that I posed to its most famous sculptor for a
statue of Aphrodite, or rather it was as a mould of perfect Womanhood
that I posed, desiring that this sculptor, who pleased me, should have
one flawless model to copy in his future work, for which he blessed
me, naming that statue "Beauty's Self." Yet when I visited him a while
afterward I found that he had changed this name to Aphrodite.
I was angered who did not desire that my loveliness should be
accredited to mine enemy and that of Isis whom I served, and asked him
why this had been done.
He answered, humbly enough, because of a dream in which the Paphian
had appeared to him and threatened him with blindness unless he gave
her own name to so divine a face and form. Moreover, being in the
thrall of superstition he prayed me, even with tears, that thus it
might remain, since otherwise he must break that statue and as he
thought, be blinded as well. So out of pity I let him have his way and
even gave him my hand to kiss in token of forgiveness.
Thus it comes about that Aphrodite unashamed throughout the ages has
taken the tribute of a million eyes, clothed in a borrowed loveliness.
So be it, since what she has stolen is but a fraction of the truth. No
sculptor, however great, can mould the perfect out of frozen stone.
From Greece, still disguised as a merchant and his daughter, we
wandered to Jerusalem, feigning to trade in pearls and gems, since
there I would study the religion of the Jews whereof I had heard so
much. The "City of Peace" it was called among the Egyptians of old
times, or so they interpreted its name, but never found I one in which
there was less of peace. Fierce-faced were those Jews and quarrelsome;
revengeful too and ever waging war, public and private, upon one
another. A peculiar people, as they name themselves, full of hate,
particularly of the stranger within their gates. To trade with them
was scarcely possible, because he who sold them wares was always left
the loser, though for this I who sought their philosophy, not their
gold, cared nothing.
So I turned myself to the study of their faith, and found that God, as
they interpreted Him, was well-nigh as fierce as were his worshippers.
Yet this I will say, that He was one God, not many, and a true God
also, since otherwise how could his prophets have written so
gloriously concerning Him? Moreover, it was their belief that He would
come to earth and lead them to the conquest of the world. This, Holly
tells me, has chanced though not in the shape they hoped, since the
King who came would have led them but to the conquest of the evil that
is in the hearts of men and to the knowledge of a life to be, in which
they had small faith. Therefore they persecuted and slew Him as a
malefactor after their cruel fashion, and what is now accepted by
millions, so says Holly, they still reject.
I preached to them, for my heart burned in me at the sight of their
sacrifices. Yes, I preached to them against the shedding of blood,
telling them of a higher philosophy of gentleness and mercy. For a
while they listened, then took up stones and stoned me, so that had I
and Noot not been protected by Heaven, we should have been slain.
After this affront I turned my back upon Jerusalem and its hook-nosed,
fierce-eyed people, and went to Cyprus where I debated with the lewd
priests of Aphrodite at Paphos. Thence I got me back to Egypt whence I
had been absent many years.
At Naukratis priests of Isis who knew of our coming, how I cannot
tell, perchance Noot had told them by messenger, or in a dream as he
could do, met us and conducted us up the Nile to the temple of Isis at
Memphis. Here we were received in state in the great hall of the
temple and lo! at the head of those who welcomed us was the Greek
Kallikrates, now by his holiness and zeal risen high in the service of
the goddess.
When I saw him, beauteous as of old, my heart stood still and the
blood rushed to my brow.
Yet I gave no sign, treating him as a stranger on whom my eyes had
never fallen until that hour. He for his part stared at me with a
puzzled air, then shook his head as one does who sees a face that he
believes he has met in dream and yet is doubtful. For be it
remembered, this man had looked on me but once, when robed as Isis I
received him into the company of her priests at Philae, and then but
for a moment in the light of the moon. Perchance he still thought that
it was the goddess herself whom he saw thus and not a mortal. At the
least he did not know that I, the beauteous prophetess who came to
Memphis after wanderings through the world, was the same as she who
had sat upon the throne of Isis at Philae and whom by chance he had
kissed upon the lips. Mayhap even he did not remember the kiss, or if
he remembered, set it down as part of the ceremonial. Thus, if I knew
him but too well, to him I was a stranger.
I bethought me of flight, knowing in my heart that to me this man was
as the fabled sword that hung above the head of Damocles, though what
harm I had to fear from him, I did not know.
Again I sought the counsel of Noot who smiled and answered,
"Have I not told you, Daughter, that perils must be faced since those
from which we flee will be swift to overtake us? If Destiny has
brought you and this man together, be certain that it is for its own
purposes. Surely you have learned your lesson and steeled your soul
against all fleshly vanities."
"Yes, my Father," I answered proudly, "I have learned my lesson and
steeled my soul. Moreover, your thought is my thought, nor will I turn
my back on any man. Here I bide, defying woman's weakness and all the
wiles of evil gods."
"Well spoken," answered Noot, and blessed me in the ancient words. Yet
as he did so I noticed that he sighed and shook his head.
For many a moon, I know not how many who, having all time at my
command, seem to have lost its petty count, I remained there in the
temple at Memphis of which soon I became the prophetess and the head
of the priestesses. Ere long the fame of my divinations spread far and
wide, so that from all the land those who sought wisdom or knowledge
of the future would come to consult me, bringing great gifts to the
goddess, though not one gem or piece of gold did Noot and I keep for
ourselves, who indeed had no need of such common dross.
So I sat in a carven chair in the sanctuary, my diviner's bowl at my
side, and uttered dark sayings like to those of the famous oracles of
the Greeks at Delphi, many of which fulfilled themselves. For in
truth, I think that there was a spirit in me--whether it came from the
Heavens or elsewhere I do not know--which enabled me to read much that
was passing upon the earth and even sometimes that which had not yet
happened upon the earth. So the renown of the Lady Isis spread till I
became a power in the land. Moreover, thus I learned many things, for
those who consult an oracle, like those who seek the help of a
physician, lay bare their souls, keeping no secret back.
Now at this time Egypt and all the countries round seethed with war
like a pot boiling on the flames. For years Egypt had beaten off the
attacks of the Persians, but now the Pharaoh Nectanebes, the second of
that name who then sat upon the throne, the last native king who
reigned upon the Nile, was threatened by Artaxerxes, that one of this
accursed race who as named Ochus. This Persian Ochus had gathered a
mighty force to subdue Egypt, hundreds of thousands of men, tens of
thousands of horsemen, hundreds of triremes and of transport ships.
The last act of the tragedy had begun of which the end was to be the
crushing of Egypt who never more should know a Pharaoh of her own
blood and choosing. Of all these things I learned through those who
came to consult the oracle of Isis, and much did I talk of them with
Noot.
Now of myself during these long years of quiet and preparation for
great events, I will say that the things of earth behind me, I grew
nearer to the Divine, and in the night time I communed with my soul
which seemed to have become a part of that which is above the world.
The Greek, Kallikrates, I saw continually, but no word passed between
us save such as had to do with matters of our faith and of the worship
of Isis in whose service he now stood high. Never did we interchange a
touch or a look of love. He was apart from me and I from him. And yet
always in my heart I feared this man, this beautiful man, the warrior
who had become a priest, for some prescience told me that he would
bring disaster on my head, or I should bring it upon his, I knew not
which.
So there we sat in the sanctuary, Noot the wise and aged, who yet
never seemed to change, Kallikrates the priest, and I, and alone or
together gave counsel to kings and captains, or uttered oracles. Clear
seemed our sky and free from trouble, yet on the far horizon in my
spirit I discerned the tempest clouds arising, the terrible clouds in
which the lightnings played like the swords of Destiny that in a day
to come were doomed to overwhelm and pierce us through.
Nectanebes the second, the Pharaoh, came to his palace at Memphis to
gather troops from Upper Egypt and made great offerings to the gods,
seeking their favour in the coming war. Now I saw him for the first
time, a gray-haired, fat, heavy-jowled man, bald-headed, large-nosed,
with great eyes like to those of an ox. Such as Nectanebes, the
magician, the consorter with familiar spirits, named the Destroyer, a
title which the gods who hated him must have given him in irony since
himself he was doomed to be destroyed. But one good thing can I say of
this Nectanebes, that he was a lover of the arts and raised glorious
buildings to the gods. Learning that I, the high-priestess, had dwelt
at Philae, he came to consult me as to the beautiful temple with the
Hathor-headed columns which he built there and through my counsel it
was made perfect, for I drew its plans, or at least those of its
adornments. Holly tells me that even as a ruin, although so small,
there is no lovelier building in all Egypt.
Now this Pharaoh thought me a Greek and did not know that I was an
Arab and the daughter of him of Ozal in Yaman, whom his father, the
first Nectanebes, had brought to his death because once long ago I had
been refused as a wife to himself or to this son of his who now had
succeeded him. Of these things doubtless he remembered little or
nothing, since that was one of the smallest of Egypt's wars. But I, I
remembered and swore that in payment for my father's blood I would
bring his accursed House to ruin. Always also I received him veiled
since I did not desire that he should look upon my beauty and inquire
concerning my history; therefore, as a prophetess had a right to do, I
received the Pharaoh veiled.
Often he came to visit me because he had learned that I was a mistress
of Magic and he who practised magic much hoped that I would teach him
secrets he did not know, and show him how to lay spells upon his
enemies. This indeed I did, but the secrets that I taught him were
evil and the spells were spears that when he threw them would fall
back upon his head.
So the scene was set, and at length came the summons to begin the play
with the watching world for audience.
A writing sealed with Pharaoh's seal was brought to the temple of
Isis, commanding Noot the high-priest and me, Ayesha, who now was
named /Oracle-of-Isis/, and the Greek Kallikrates, Chief of the
Ceremonies, whose office it was to assist me in my divinations, to
attend the court of Pharaoh and there declare to him the future of the
war as it should be revealed to us by the great goddess whom we
served. At first we refused to go, whereon there came another message
which said that if we continued to refuse, we should be brought. The
Pharaoh wished to offer no affront to Isis, the messenger declared,
but the matter was urgent, as great things hung upon the revelations
which we alone could make, and some of the kings and generals who were
gathered in the temple as allies of Nectanebes, being the worshippers
of other gods, could not set foot in the holy shrine of Isis.
Then, there being no help for it, we answered that we would come that
very night at the rising of the moon.
Hastily consulting together we planned the words of an oracle, double-
edged words that yet prophesied good to Nectanebes and encouraged him
to war; for thus we believed we should most quickly bring about his
downfall.
Yet as those words were never spoken I will not write them down.
CHAPTER VI
THE DIVINATION
Accompanied by the priests and priestesses of Isis clad in their robes
and chanting the holy songs, I was borne veiled to the palace of the
Pharaoh in a litter, with its curtains drawn. On my right hand walked
Noot the high-priest, white-bearded, venerable; and on my left the
Greek Kallikrates, Master of the Rites.
Thus we came to the palace of which the outer courts were filled with
Grecian soldiers of the guard, some of whom in past years Kallikrates
had once commanded, although as a shaven priest of Isis, disguised in
his white robes, they knew him no more. These men stared at us, ready
to mock and yet afraid, as did Phoenicians, Sidonians, men of Cyprus,
and others who were gathered in the courts as though awaiting some
great event.
In an outer hall a captain of the guard bade our escort of priests and
priestesses to await our return, but we three, that is I, Ayesha,
Noot, and Kallikrates, were summoned to the small banqueting chamber
where Nectanebes with a few of the most highly placed of his guests
sat at their feast. Among these were the King of Sidon, two more kings
from Cyprus, three Grecian generals, some great nobles of Egypt, and
others. Also certain royal ladies were present, and among them one who
instantly drew my eyes to her. She was younger than I--perchance there
may have been ten years between us, tall, slender, and lovely in her
dark fashion, with a strong, quiet face and large brooding eyes, soft
as a deer's and rather blue than black in colour.
Suddenly as we entered I, who note all, saw these eyes grow frightened
like to those of one who sees some spirit returned from the halls of
Death; saw also the rich-hued face turn pale, then grow red again as
the blood flowed back; saw the breast heave beneath the jewelled
robes, so sharply that a flower fell from them, and the lips of coral
part as though to utter some remembered name.
Wondering what had thus disturbed this beauteous royalty since I,
being veiled, it could not have been the vision of myself, I glanced
round and perceived that Kallikrates, who was on my left, but a little
behind me, had become pale as a dead man and stood like one frozen
into stone.
"Who is that royal woman?" I whispered to Noot through my veil, for
royal I knew her to be by the Uraeus circlet she wore upon her raven
hair.
"Pharaoh's daughter, Amenartas," he whispered back, "whom the Greeks
call /The Maiden/ because she will take no man in marriage."
Then I remembered a certain confession that once I had heard sitting
on the throne of the goddess Isis at Philae, of how the penitent had
loved a girl of the royal House of Egypt, and for her sake killed his
own dear brother; remembered also that this penitent was none other
than the priest Kallikrates. Now I understood all, and though
Kallikrates was naught to me save a fellow servant of the goddess, I
hated that Amenartas and became aware that between her and me there
was war unending, though how and why I knew not.
Next I looked at a man clad in kingly robes who sat on Pharaoh's
right. He was a large man of about five and forty years of age with
dark, handsome face and shifting eyes; one with a jovial aspect which
yet I felt to be but a mask covering a heart full of evil schemes.
From his purple robe sewn with pearls and the style of his attire and
headdress I guessed that this must be Tenes the Phoenician, King of the
city of Sidon that was reported the wealthiest in the world, which
city, having revolted, had joined Egypt in its war against the
Persians. Instantly I weighed that man in the balance of my mind and
wrote him down as an ambitious rogue who was also a coward and, as I
judged from the many charms he wore, full of superstition.
The others I had no time to study for at once the Pharaoh began to
speak.
"Greeting, Prophetess," he said, rising from his chair and bowing to
us, or rather to me, "Greeting, High-priest of Isis, Queen of Heaven,
Mistress of the World; greeting also, Priest, Master of the Rites of
Isis. Pharaoh thanks you all for thus promptly answering to his
summons, since this night Egypt needs your wisdom more perchance than
ever before in all the ages of its history."
"Be pleased, O Pharaoh, to set out what you desire of us, the servants
of the eternal goddess," said Noot.
"This, High-priest: that you should declare the future to us. Hearken!
As you know, the great war has begun. The mighty Tenes here, King of
Sidon, my ally, by the help of the Greeks I sent him, has defeated the
Persians and against these Cyprus also is in revolt. But now
Artaxerxes Ochus has seized the throne of Persia, having murdered all
who stood between it and him, with the help of Bagoas the eunuch, his
counsellor and general. He has raised a countless host and is pouring
down upon Sidon and upon Egypt. Therefore we would learn how the war
shall go and to what gods we must sacrifice to secure the victory."
"O Pharaoh," answered Noot, "in bygone years when your father sat upon
the throne and I was the /Kherheb/, yes, the first magician of Egypt,
he asked me such questions as these, and having prayed to my goddess,
I answered him in the words that she commanded. None heard these words
save your father himself, for he and I were alone together. Yet there
was that in them which made him wroth so that he sought to kill me,
and to save my life I fled out of Egypt, going whither the goddess led
me. Afterward I was called back to Egypt where once more I an high-
priest of Isis though the office of /Kherheb/ is filled by another.
How know I, Pharaoh, if I obey you as I obeyed your father, and again
the goddess should utter prophecies which are not pleasing to the ears
of kings, that once more my life may not be sought in payment?"
"I swear, High-priest," answered Nectanebes eagerly, "that whatever
may be revealed by the goddess, you shall take no harm. I swear it by
the name and throne of the holy Isis, to whom I will make great gifts,
and all this company are witnesses of the oath. If it be broken, may
the curse of Isis and of all the gods of Egypt fall upon the head of
me and mine. Draw nigh now that I may touch you with my sceptre,
thereby forgiving all that you have said or shall say against me or my
House, and restoring to you your office of /Kherheb/ of Egypt, whereof
my father, who to-day is gathered in Osiris, robbed you."
So Noot drew near and Pharaoh touched him with his sceptre, a cedar
wand surmounted with a little golden image of Horus, which he always
carried because of his throne-name which signified "/Horus-of-Gold/."
Moreover, he re-created him /Kherheb/ and in token of it set upon his
shoulders the gold chain from his own neck, and swore to him his place
and power for life and the gift of an alabaster coffin wherein to lie
after life was done. This sarcophagus, however, Noot refused, saying
darkly that it was fated that he should sleep his last sleep far away
from Egypt. Then he, Noot, drew back and as he went I saw Pharaoh's
daughter rise and whisper awhile in her father's ear. He listened and
nodded. Then he said,
"Come hither, priest who is named 'Lover-of-Isis' and Master of her
rites, the royal Lady of Egypt says to me that in bygone days when she
was scarce a woman, she thinks that before you were a priest, you held
some command amongst the Greeks of my guard, as from your stature and
bearing I can well believe. She says also that if her memory serves
her, you slew some man in a quarrel and for this reason fled away and
sought refuge with Isis. If such things happened I have forgotten
them, nor do I ask concerning them. Let them lie. Yet, lest you should
be afraid that old tales may be told against you or vengeance wrought
upon you, come hither also and receive pardon for the past, and
protection and advancement for the future and with these a gift from
Pharaoh."
Now I marvelled at this lady's foresight and cunning which showed her
how to take advantage of Pharaoh's mood and safeguard one who once had
loved her, all of which told me that she must be a wise woman as well
as beauteous. Also it told me that the worship of this man had been
pleasing to her. Then Kallikrates drew near and was touched with the
sceptre. Moreover, Pharaoh spoke to him in like words that he had
spoken to Noot, pardoning him all and promising him much. Moreover, in
token of his favour he gave him a gold cup of Grecian workmanship
having two handles, that was chased about with the story of the loves
of Aphrodite and Adonis, and bordered with a wreath of those anemones
which were fabled to have sprung from his blood. This glorious,
flower-like cup from which the guests, when we entered, were pledging
themselves in wine of Cyprus, Pharaoh lifted from the board and sent
to Kallikrates, a great gift which made it clear to me how deeply he
desired to propitiate the goddess in the persons of her servants.
Lastly the private scribe was commanded to write down these decrees
that he had spoken, which he did forthwith, sealing them with
Pharaoh's seal and giving one copy to Noot whilst keeping the other to
be filed among the records.
Thus Noot and Kallikrates were protected from all things, but to me,
the Prophetess, nothing was said, as I thought for two reasons, first
because I was known to Pharaoh, who as I have told, had often
consulted me upon matters of magic, and secondly because as the "voice
of the goddess" I was holy and above reward or punishment at the hands
of man. Thus I thought, with how much truth shall be seen.
The gifts were received, the papyrus had been hidden away in the robe
of Noot, and there was silence in the chamber. To me, Ayesha, this
heavy silence was full of omen. My soul, made keen and fine with
ceaseless contemplation of things that are above the earth, in that
silence seemed to hear the breath of the watching gods of Egypt. To me
it was as though they had gathered there to listen to the fate of this
their ancient home on earth. Yes, I felt them about me; or at the
least I felt a spirit stirring.
The company at the table drank no more wine and ceased from speech.
They sat still staring in front of them and notwithstanding the
glitter of the ornaments that proclaimed their royalty or rule, to me
they were as dead men in a tomb. Only the Princess of Egypt,
Amenartas, seemed to be alive and outside the circle of this doom, for
I noted that her splendid eyes sought the face, the perfect, carven
face of the priest Kallikrates and that though he stood with folded
arms and gazed fixedly upon the ground, he knew it, for now and again
covertly he glanced back at her.
At length one of those guests could bear no more, and spoke. He was a
close-lipped, war-worn Grecian general who afterward I learned was
named Kleinios of Cos, the commander of Pharaoh's mercenary forces.
"By Zeus!" he cried, "are we men or are we stones, or are we shades in
Hades? Let these diviners divine, and have done, for I would get me to
my wine again."
"Aye," broke in Tenes, King of Sidon. "Bid them divine, Pharaoh, since
we have much to agree upon ere I sail at dawn."
Then all the company cried, "/Divine! Divine!/" save Amenartas only,
who searched the face of Kallikrates with her eyes, as though she
would learn what lay behind its cold and priestly mask.
"So be it," said Noot, "but first I pray Pharaoh to bid all mean men
depart."
Pharaoh waved his sceptre and the butlers and attendants bowed and
went. Then Noot motioned to Kallikrates, who thereon shook the
/sistrum/ that he bore, and in his rich, low voice, uttered a chant to
the goddess, that which was used to summon her presence.
He ended his chant and Noot began to pray.
"Hear me, thy prophet, O thou who wast and art and shalt be, thou in
whose bosom is locked all the wisdom of heaven and earth," he prayed.
"These kings and great ones desire knowledge, declare it unto them
according to thy will. They desire truth--let them learn the truth in
such fashion as thou shalt decree."
Then he was silent. None spoke, yet it seemed that a command came to
the three of us, for suddenly Noot looked at the priest Kallikrates, a
very strange look. Next the priest Kallikrates, rising from his knees,
laid down the /sistrum/ and taking the beautiful cup that Pharaoh had
given him, went to the table and washed it with pure water from a
silver ewer, then filled it to the brim from the ewer and brought it
to me, Ayesha. Now I knew that I was commanded to gaze into that cup
and to say what things I saw.
So I set it on the ground in front of me and kneeling, threw my veil
over it and gazed into the water in the shallow golden cup.
For a little while I saw nothing, till presently a face formed in the
water, the face of the royal lady, Amenartas, which stared up at me
out of the cup. Yes, it stared hard and seemed to threaten me, for in
its eyes were hate and vengeance. Then another face came and covered
it, the face of Kallikrates the priest, and in its eyes were trouble
and desire.
Now I knew that the goddess Isis, or perchance another, she of the
Greeks, spoke to me of matters that had to do with myself and not with
the fate of Egypt. In my heart I prayed to the Queen of Heaven to rid
me of these visions, though to give me others I did not pray her,
since it was my design to speak certain politic words which we had
prepared.
Yet other visions came unsought, for some spirit possessed me, a
spirit of truth and destiny. They were many and all of them terrible.
I saw battlefields; I saw men fall in thousands, I saw cities in
flames. I saw that false-eyed king, Tenes, dead. I saw the General,
Kleinios of Cos, also dead, lying on a heap of Grecian slain. I saw
the Pharaoh Nectanebes flying up Nile upon a boat--I knew it was Nile
because the current rippled against the prow of his ship, I saw him
seized by black savages and throttled with a rope till his tongue hung
out and the great round eyes started from his head. I saw the temples
of Egypt burning and a fierce-faced, drunken king hacking at the
statues of the gods with a Persian sword and butchering the priests
upon the altar. Then I saw no more but a voice called in my ears.
"Death to Egypt! Death and desolation! Death to her king, death to her
priests, death to her gods! Finished, finished, all is finished!"
I cast the bowl from me. It overset but lo! there flowed from it not
water but blood, or dark-hued wine, staining the white marble of the
pavement. I stared at it! All stared at this god-sent horror!
"A trick!" cried the Princess Amenartas. "She has coloured the water
behind the shelter of her veil."
The others too, especially the Greeks, took up the cry, echoing,
"A trick, a brazen trick!"
Only I noted that Pharaoh was silent, Pharaoh who knew that Ayesha,
named /Isis-come-to-Earth/, did not deal in tricks; Pharaoh who
himself practised magic and had seen such omens sent by Set. Lo!
Pharaoh looked afraid and spoke no word, only glared with his great
eyes at the stain upon the marble.
"What answer did the goddess give to your prayer, prophetess," asked
Amenartas, sneering at me.
"This answer, royal Lady of Egypt," and I pointed to the marble, "the
answer of blood."
"Blood! Whose blood? That of the Persians?"
"Nay, Lady, that of many who sit at this feast and who ere long shall
sit at the table of Osiris, and of thousands who cling to them. Yet be
comforted, Lady, not your blood. I think that you have much mischief
to work ere you sit also at the table of Osiris, or mayhap at that of
Set," I added, giving thrust for thrust.
"Declare then their names, Seeress."
"Nay, I declare them not. Go, seek them for yourself, Lady, or let
Pharaoh your father seek, for is he not a magician? though what god
gives him vision I do not know. You name me cheat, or rather you name
the goddess cheat. Therefore the goddess is dumb and her prophetess is
dumb."
"Aye, I name you cheat," she cried, who in her heart was mad with
fear, "and cheat you are. Now let this temple hag who hides her
hideousness behind a silken screen unveil that we may see her as she
is, and let her be searched and the vase of dye be taken from her
bosom or her robes."
"Aye, let her be searched," shouted the guests who were also afraid.
"No need to search, high lords," I said in a quavering voice, as
though I too were overcome with fear. "I will obey the Princess. I
will unveil, yet I beseech you all, make not a mock of me when you see
me as I am. Once I was perchance as fair as that royal Lady who
commands, but years of abstinence and the sleepless search for wisdom
mar the features and wither the frame. Moreover, time touches the
locks, such of them as remain to me, since these too grow thin with
age. Yet I will unveil and the vase of precious dye shall be the prize
of him who first can snatch it from my bosom or my robe."
"Aye," said one of them, it was the king Tenes, "and in payment for
her trick we will make her drink what remains of it to give colour to
her poor old carcase."
"Aye," I answered, "and I will drink what remains of it for I think
the stuff is harmless. Oh! be not angry because a poor conjurer plays
her tricks."
Now Noot stared at me as though he were about to speak. Then his face
changed like to that of a man who of a sudden receives a command that
others cannot hear. He let fall his eyes, remaining silent, and I,
watching, knew that it was the will of the goddess, or at least Noot's
will, that I should unveil.
I glanced at the priest Kallikrates but he stood still, looking like
Apollo's self frozen into stone.
During this play I had loosened the fastenings of my veil and hood and
now of a sudden I cast them from me, revealing myself clad as Isis,
that is in little save a transparent, clinging robe fastened about my
middle. On my breast, hanging from a chain of pearls, were her holy
symbols carved in gems and gold, and on my head her vulture cap
beneath which my tresses hung almost to my feet, having the golden
feathers of the cap adorned with sapphires and with rubies and the
uraeus rising from it fashioned of glittering diamonds.
Aye, I unveiled and stood before them, my arms folded upon the
jewelled girdle beneath my breast.
"Behold! Kings and Lords," I said, "the temple hag stands before you
in such poor shape as it has pleased the gods to fashion her. Now let
him who can see it, come, take the vase that hides this unveiled
trickster's dye."
For a moment there was silence while those brutal men devoured my
white loveliness with their eyes, taking count of every beauty of my
perfect face and form. Amenartas stared at me and her ruddy cheeks
went pale; yes, even the coral faded from her rich lips. Then from
between those lips there burst these words:
"This is not a woman! This is the very goddess. Beware of her, ye men,
for she is terrible."
"Nay, nay," I answered humbly, "I am but a poor mortal, not even royal
like to yourself, Lady--but a poor mortal with some wits and wisdom,
though perchance Isis for a while to your sight has touched me with
her splendour. Come, take the vase ere I veil myself again."
Then those men went mad, all save Pharaoh, who sat brooding.
"Goddess or woman," they cried, "give her to us who henceforward can
never look upon the beauty of another."
King Tenes rose, his coarse face afire and his shifting eyes fixed
upon me greedily.
"By Baal and Ashtoreth!" he cried, "goddess or woman, never have I
seen such an one as this prophetess of Isis. Hearken, Pharaoh, before
the feast we disputed together concerning a great sum of gold and in
the end it was confessed by you that it was due to me in aid of my
costs of war although, so you said, it could not be found in Egypt
save by raiding the rich treasury of Isis. Perchance the goddess
learned of this design of yours and by way of answer sent us an evil
oracle. I know not, but this I do know, that she sent you also a means
to pay the debt without cost to yourself or the robbing of her sacred
treasury. Give me this fair priestess to comfort me with her wisdom
and otherwise"--here the company laughed coarsely--"and I will talk no
more of the matter of that gold."
Pharaoh listened without raising his head, then looked on me with
rolling eyes and answered:
"Which would anger the goddess most, King Tenes--to lose her gold or
her prophetess?"
"The former as I think, Pharaoh, seeing that gold is scarce, and
prophetesses--true or false--are many. Give her to me, I say."
"I cannot for my oath's sake, King Tenes."
"You swore an oath to yonder high-priest and to yonder man, who looks
like a Grecian god clad in a priest's robe and is called Master-of-
the-Rites, but to this lady you swore none."
"I swore the oath to Isis, King Tenes, and if I break it doubtless she
will be avenged upon me. Go your way; the gold shall follow you to the
last ounce, but the prophetess is not mine to give."
Now Tenes stared at me again and I, who hated him with all my soul,
gave him back his stare with interest, though this did but seem to
inflame him the more. Then he turned on Pharaoh furiously and answered
in a cold voice,
"Hear me, Pharaoh. It is but a small matter, yet my mind is set upon
this woman who knows the heart of the gods and can pour their wisdom
into my ears. Therefore make your choice:
"In Sidon there are two factions of almost equal strength. One of them
says 'Make an alliance with Egypt and fight the Persian Ochus whom
already you have defeated once.' The other says 'Make an alliance with
Ochus and as reward in a day to come sit on Pharaoh's throne!' I have
taken the first counsel as you know. Yet it is not too late to change
that counsel for a second which perchance would prove the wiser, if
there be aught in yonder divination," and he pointed to the blood-
stain upon the marble floor. Then he went on:
"Moreover, I have my captains about me at this board and those that
serve me without with all my fleet, and therefore should it be changed
I need not fear to tell you so and to your face. So I say to you that
if you will not please me in this small matter, presently my
ambassadors go forth to Susa with a message for the ear of Ochus to
which it would rejoice you to listen, seeing that without the strong
aid of Sidon and her fleets Egypt cannot conquer in this war."
Thus Tenes spoke and laid his hand upon the pommel of his short
Phoenician sword.
Now the face of the Pharaoh, bearded thus in his own city and at his
own board, grew red with rage and I saw that he was about to answer
this outland king, defying him as many of the great monarchs who
filled his throne before him would have done. But ere he could speak
his royal daughter Amenartas whispered in his ear and although I could
not hear her words, I read their purport in her face. They were--
"Tenes speaks truth. Without Sidon you cannot stand against the
Persians and Egypt is lost. Let the woman go. Isis, understanding,
will forgive, who otherwise must see the Persian Holy Fire burning on
her altars."
Pharaoh heard and the anger written in his eyes was changed to
trouble. Rolling them in his fashion he looked on Noot and said to him
as one who asks a question,
"I swore an oath to you, /Kherheb/, and to yonder priest, but to the
prophetess I swore no oath and perchance Egypt's fate hangs upon this
business."
The old high-priest paused awhile like a man who awaits a message. If
so, it seemed to come, for presently he answered in a quiet voice,
"Pharaoh is right; Egypt's fate hangs upon this business; also
Pharaoh's fate; also that of King Tenes and many others. The only fate
which is not touched, whether it be finished in this way or in that,
is the fate of yonder seeress who is named /Isis-come-to-Earth/, since
the goddess will protect her own. Settle the matter as you will,
Pharaoh. Only settle it swiftly, because under our rule it is time
that I and my company who wait without should return to the temple to
make our nightly prayer and offerings to the goddess, the Queen of all
the earth, the Queen of Pharaoh and of Egypt; the Queen of the King of
Sidon, and in the end the Queen also of Artaxerxes Ochus, the Persian,
as one day surely he shall learn."
Thus spoke Noot unconcernedly and hearing him, I laughed, for now I
was sure that I had nothing to fear from Tenes or any other man upon
the earth. Therefore I laughed, which that company thought strange in
one who was about to be borne away a slave, and bade Kallikrates give
me my veil and hood, also the cloak that I had thrown off when I
entered the banqueting hall.
He obeyed, and while he was assisting me to cover up my beauty in the
folds of that veil, I noted that alone among all the men here present,
this beauty did not seem to stir him at all. Had he been clothing a
marble statue or an ivory image of the goddess, as every day it was
his duty to do at sunrise, anointing it with perfumes and garlanding
it with flowers, he could not have been less moved. Or perhaps so
truly had the priest in him overcome the man that he had learned to
cloak all the feelings of a man. Or perhaps it was because that royal
Amenartas watched his every movement with her eyes. I know not, but
this I do know, that his calm angered me and it came into my mind that
were I not the head-priestess of Isis and sworn to her, there should
be a different tale to tell. Yes, even in that moment of destiny this
came into my mind, which shows that in my soul I had not forgotten the
meeting of our lips in yonder shrine at Philae. At least I have often
thought so since, I, who have had much time for thought.
"Priestess, you are mine," cried King Tenes in triumph. "Make ready to
sail with me for Sidon within an hour."
"Do you think that I am yours, King Tenes?" I asked in a musing voice
as I fastened the folds of my veil and arranged the hood. "If so, I
hold otherwise. I hold that I, Ayesha, a free-born lady of the ancient
Arab blood, am not the slave of any Phoenician who for a little while
chances to be a king, but of her who is the Queen of kings, Isis the
Mother. Nay, Tenes, I am more, I am Isis herself, /Isis-come-to-
Earth/. It seems that go with you I must, since such is the will of
the goddess, but, Phoenician, take heed. Should you dare to befoul me
even with a touch, I tell you that I have strength at my command and
that ere long Sidon shall lack a king and Set shall gain a subject.
For your own sake therefore and for that of Sidon, think again and let
me be!"
Now the great jaws of Tenes fell and he stared at me open-mouthed.
"Yet you shall go with me," he muttered thickly, "and for the rest
Ashtoreth rules in Sidon, not Isis, for know that there are two Queens
of Heaven."
"Aye, Tenes, a false queen and a true, and let the false beware of the
true."
Then I turned to Nectanebes and said,
"Is it still your command, O Pharaoh, that I accompany this ally of
yours to Sidon? Bethink you ere you answer, since much hangs upon your
words."
"Yea, Priestess, it must be so. I have spoken and my decree is
recorded. The fate of Egypt is more than that of any priestess and
doubtless King Tenes will treat you well. If not, you say that you
have strength to defend yourself against him."
Now as I answered, I laughed lightly and the sound of my laughter was
like the tinkle of falling silver.
"So be it, Pharaoh. To me it is nothing; indeed I would see Sidon, the
glorious city, while she still is Sidon, home of merchants, mistress
of the seas. Still ere I go, shall I tell you something, Pharaoh, of
what was shewn to me in yonder bowl before its water was turned to
blood--by dye from that vase which none of you has found? If I
remember right, for as you who practise magic, know, Pharaoh, such
visions fade quickly like dreams at dawn--I say that if I remember
right, it had to do with the fate of a great king. Have you ever seen
a king, O Pharaoh, when in place of the chain of royalty a collar of
rope is set about his throat and drawn hard till the tongue is thrust
from the royal mouth and the royal eyes start from their sockets? Nay?
Then shall I draw his picture? Perchance in days to come you would
know it again?"
"Witch, accursed witch!" shouted Pharaoh. "Take her, Tenes, and
begone, though sooner would I nurture a viper in my bosom," and rising
from the board, he turned and fled away.
Again I laughed as I answered,
"I must go, but it seems that Pharaoh has gone first. Royal Amenartas,
watch the good god, your father, for I think that he is too
superstitious and that which men believe fulfils itself upon them."
Then I went to Noot and spoke with him--few words for already the
guards were advancing upon me.
"Fear nothing, Daughter," he said, "you are safe."
"I know that I am safe, Master, yet be ready to come to my aid when I
call, as my spirit tells me that call I shall."
He bent his head and the guards came up. As I went I glanced at the
priest Kallikrates, who taking no note of me or of my fate, still
stood staring at the royal Amenartas like a statue cut in stone, while
she stared back at him.
CHAPTER VII
THE QUELLING OF THE STORM
They set me on board a great ship, on the prow of which were images of
certain gods of the Phoenicians, called by the Greeks /Pataeci/, not
unlike to that which the Egyptians worshipped by the name of Bes,
before which images burned fire. There was a royal cabin in that ship
which was given to me, and with it splendid robes and furnishings of
gold for my table.
At dawn we cast off from the quay of the white-walled city while
thousands of the worshippers of Isis who learned that I was being
taken from them, stood upon the quay and wailed, crying that the
/Mouth-of-Isis/ was sent away to slavery and that where her "Mouth"
went, there the goddess would follow, leaving vengeance to fall upon
their heads. For that the head-priestess of Isis should be given into
the hands of barbarians and their foreign gods was such a crime as had
not been known in Egypt.
Therefore they wailed, prophesying evil, and I stood upon the stern
alone in my white robes, veiled, and hearkened to them, for none dared
to come near to me. Yes, I hearkened and blessed them with my hands,
whereat they knelt and wailed the more.
When at last we had passed down the Nile and were out upon the great
sea, sailing swiftly for Sidon over quiet waters, I, Ayesha, having
taken counsel of the goddess and of my woman's craft, sent for King
Tenes, who was also on board the ship, and received him in his own
cabin that had been given up to me.
For my heart was black with rage against him, and against Nectanebes,
Pharaoh of Egypt, who had betrayed me, and in my heart I swore that I
would destroy them both. Yes, there I, the captive, sat and received
the captor king in his own cabin, purposing his doom, though how this
was to be accomplished as yet I did not know.
"O King," I said, "I, your slave who, when not a slave, was high-
priestess of Isis in Egypt and her seeress, into whose breast the
goddess poured her wisdom and her secrets, as indeed still she does,
would speak with you, and since I could not come to you among so many
men, have prayed your Majesty to come to me. What would you do with
me, King Tenes, since it has pleased you to force Pharaoh to give me
into your keeping? Is it an oracle that you desire concerning your
fate or that of your country in the war? If so, I will----"
"Nay, Priestess," he broke in hurriedly, "of your oracles I and others
have had enough. They are bitter bread for daily food. Keep them, I
pray you, to nurture your own soul."
"What would you of me then, King Tenes, that you have been at such
pains to steal me away from Egypt, even threatening Pharaoh to break
your solemn pact with him if he did not give me to your hands, me, the
snared bird, who by chance was left out of his oath to the high-priest
and Isis's officer, the Greek."
"Lady Ayesha," blurted out Tenes, "that I have learned to be by birth,
daughter of Yarab, once ruler of Ozal, upon whom, with the Egyptians,
I made war in the past and brought to his death, because of /you/,
Lady, tell me, you who are wise, what would any man of you who had
beheld your beauty as I saw it some nights gone?"
"Man, being man, that is, a ravening beast fashioned like a god in
shape but not in soul, would make me his prey, Tenes. Such at least
was the desire of the first Nectanebes whom you aided with the ships
of Sidon to destroy my father, and of many since his time."
"Good. Well, I who am a man and something more, being not a god
indeed, but a great king, would make you my prey, as you say, for to
tell truth, having once looked on you I see no other woman in the
whole world."
Now I threw back my veil and studied him with my eyes.
"So you would take me for your queen, Tenes? Indeed I guessed as much.
But what would your other queen, for doubtless you have one, say to
this, O King?"
"My queen!" he said in an astonished voice, "my queen?"
"Surely, Tenes, you would scarcely dare to proffer less than queenship
to such a one as I?"
"May be not. Well, let us say that I would make you my queen, since in
Sidon it is not difficult to be rid of others of whom one may be
weary; that is, it is not difficult to a king who also is high-priest
of Baal and of Ashtoreth. Yes, yes, I am sure that I would make you my
queen. I will offer it to you in writing if you desire."
"Aye, I do desire it, King, and that there may be no faults or traps
in it, I myself will draw up the writing for you to sign. Only I doubt
much whether I shall accept the offer if it is made."
"Why not, Lady? Is it a small thing to be Queen of Sidon?"
"For Ayesha, daughter of Yarab, high-priestess and prophetess of Isis,
the wisest and most beauteous woman in the world, one who has never
turned to look on man, it is a very small thing indeed, King Tenes. It
is so small a thing that I will not deign to accept that proffered
crown of yours, unless----"
"Unless what, Lady?"
"Unless it is made larger, King, so large and wide that she who wears
it holds rule over all the earth."
"By Baal, Ashtoreth, and Moloch, all three of them, what mean you,
Woman?"
"What I say, Man. I mean that when you are monarch, not of Sidon only,
but of Egypt, Cyprus, Persia, and all the East, then perchance I will
marry you, unless my fancy changes, as it may do, but certainly not
before."
"Surely you are mad," he gasped. "How can I gather all these diadems
upon a single brow? It is impossible."
"Aye, for you it is impossible, King Tenes, but for me it is possible.
I can gather them and set them on your brow and on my own, I who have
within me all the wisdom of the earth and much of the strength of
Heaven. Understand that if I desire it and you follow my counsel, I
can crown you emperor of the world, no less, but the question is, do I
desire it and will you follow my counsel?"
"Lady, I swear that you are mad, unless in truth you are a goddess as
they say in Egypt."
"Perchance I am somewhat of a goddess, and being so, marvel whether
for any reward that can be given I shall debase myself by taking such
a one as you to husband, King Tenes. Now, first, look on me well and
answer whether you do indeed desire me and are ready to win me through
toil and danger, or whether you will let me be. For know, Tenes, that
though I seem to be your captive, you cannot snare me or do me
violence. Lay but a finger on me against my will, and it shall be your
death, since I have those to aid me whom you cannot see. Now look--and
answer."
He looked, devouring me with his greedy eyes, then said,
"Of a truth I desire you more than anything on the earth, and since I
may not do so otherwise, for I perceive that you are too strong for
me, will take you at your own price. Yea, even if I must wait for
years, still I will take you. Now tell me, most beauteous and most
wise, what I must do, and swear to me that when I am king of all
things you will wed me."
"Aye, Tenes, I swear that when you are king of all things I will wed
you," I answered gently, laughing in my heart as I remembered that the
first and last of all things, the greatest of all things, is--Death.
"Hearken. You shall bring me to Sidon, not as a captive but as a
strange goddess who has come to aid you and your people, and with
honour shall you receive me in Sidon, causing your priests and
priestesses to offer me worship and incense."
"And if so, what then?"
"Then, when I have studied your people and your preparations for war,
we will take counsel together and I will show you how you may prevail.
Tell me, Tenes, do you love Pharaoh Nectanebes?"
"Nay, Lady, I hate him who asks too much and gives too little, as I
hated his father before him. Still we sleep in the same bed and prop
up the same wall, and if one of us ceases to support the wall, the
Persians will push it down on both."
"I understand. Yet even so it comes into my mind that perchance you
would have been safer had you been pushing at the wall with the
Persian Ochus and not holding it up with the Egyptian Nectanebes."
He glanced at me with his shifting eyes and answered,
"I have had that thought, as you know well, but having rebelled
against Ochus, defeated his satraps, and slain thousands of his
soldiers, or rather those of his father, if I climb the wall I might
find spears waiting for me on the farther side. Lady, it is too late."
"Yes, King Tenes, perhaps it is too late; I will consider of the
matter in your interest and my own. But first send me papyrus and
writing tools that I may set down our pact. When you have approved and
signed it, then I will consider of this and other matters, and not
before. For the while, farewell."
He rose and went unwillingly enough and when I was alone in the cabin
I laughed in my heart. This fish had been easy to hook, but he was a
large fish and strong, and I must beware lest he pull me into the deep
sea where both might drown together. Moreover, the man was hateful to
me, more so even than that ox-eyed, heavy-jowled Pharaoh, and his
presence seemed to poison the air I breathed. Yet if I entered into
this pact with him doubtless I must breathe it often, which vexed me
who shrank from men and their desires, and above all from this man.
Yet he had done me wrong and insult; he had helped the Egyptians to
make war upon my people and he had taken me as a slave, me, Ayesha,
thinking to make of me his woman, and cost what it might, I would pay
him back as I would pay back Nectanebes who sold me.
The papyrus was brought to me by a slave and on it I wrote such a
contract as I think was never signed by a king before. It was brief
and ran thus:--
"Ayesha, daughter of Yarab, high-priestess of Isis, prophetess of
Isis, known in Heaven and among her servants as /Isis-come-to-
Earth/, and /Child of Wisdom/, to Tenes, King of Sidon.
"When you, Tenes, are king not only of Sidon but of Egypt, Cyprus,
Persia, and the East, as I can make you, if you obey me in all
things, then I, Ayesha, vow myself to you as your sole wife and
queen. But if, ere this dignity is mine and yours, you dare even
to touch my robe, then in the name of Isis and speaking with the
voice of Isis, I, Ayesha, vow to you shame and death in the world
and after it all the torments of hell and the jaws of the Devourer
that await the judgment of Truth on perjured souls beyond the Sun.
"Accepted and sealed by Ayesha, daughter of Yarab and by Tenes,
King of Sidon."
Having copied this writing, I sent it to Tenes by the slave that he
might study it. Awhile later he asked audience of me, and entering,
said in a thick voice that only a madman would set his seal to such
words.
I looked at him and answered that it was nothing to me whether he
sealed or did not seal them; indeed that considering all, I should be
better pleased if he let the bargain be.
He stared at me and rage took hold of him who was inflamed with wine.
"Who are you," he said, "that dare to talk thus to Tenes the King? You
are but a woman clad in the robes of a priestess who pretend to powers
you have not. Why should I not take you and have done?"
Now I mocked him, answering,
"Because I think you love to sit upon a throne better than to lie in a
grave, Tenes, even in a king's coffin. Still, as you desire to know
more particularly, I will put your question to the goddess, who is not
far from me even on this ship, and to-morrow when the sun is up I will
pass on her words to you--that is, if you live to look upon
to-morrow's sun, King Tenes," I added, staring him in the eyes.
These words seemed to sober him, for he turned pale and left the
cabin, making a sign to avert the evil eye, but as I noted, taking the
writing with him. Yet me he left perplexed and afraid, for my heart
was not so bold as my mouth!
Now that night, whether by chance or by the will of Heaven, a great
tempest sprang up suddenly. The captain of the trireme, a Greek or a
half-Greek of Naukratis, Philo by name, whom now upon this ship I met
for the first time, came himself to warn me, and to make sure that all
was fast in my cabin. He was a quick-brained man, very active in his
body and pleasant-faced, with a brown, pointed beard, who had seen
some five and thirty years upon the earth. I had made inquiries
concerning him from a certain slave who attended me, and was told that
although he pretended to timidity, this Philo was in truth a great
warrior and one of the best handlers of a bow upon the mouths of the
Nile, since that which he aimed at he always hit, even if it were a
fowl in flight. Moreover, he was a very good seaman and, it was said,
faithful to those he served and a worshipper of the gods.
"If so," I answered to that old slave, "how comes it that this Philo,
instead of a humble captain, is not the first general or admiral
amongst the Greeks, as a man of such quality should be?"
"Because, divine Lady, of certain faults," answered the slave, "such
faults as have made of me what I am instead of the Count of a Nome
upon the Nile as I should have been. This Philo has always thought
more of the welfare of others than of his own, which is a very evil
weakness; also he has loved women too much, which is a worse."
"Vile sins indeed," I said, "more particularly the second. The wise
always think of themselves first, and the holy never love more than
one woman, and her not too much, which perhaps is why the wise and the
holy are so hateful and so dull. Bring this Philo to me; he is one
whom I should wish to know."
In the end Philo came, though whether because my message had reached
him, or because of the advancing storm, I am not certain. At least he
came, and as he bowed before me, made a certain secret sign whereby I
knew that he was a worshipper of Isis, and one of high degree, though
not of the highest, since when I tried him with that sign he could not
answer. Still his rank in our great company was enough, and
thenceforward we spoke to each other under the seal of the goddess, or
as our phrase went in those days "within the shadow of her wings," as
brother and sister might, or rather as mother and son.
That is, we did this after I had proved him further and brought to his
mind the fate of those who betray the goddess and her ministers upon
earth.
This Philo told me in few words, that although the trireme was
Egyptian and named /Hapi/ after the god of Nile, for this voyage she
was under charter to Tenes and for the most part manned with
Sidonians, also with low fellows from Cyprus and the coast-ports.
These like the Phoenician guards of Tenes, of whom there were fifty on
the vessel, worshipped other gods than those of Egypt, that is, such
of them as worshipped any gods at all.
Many of these men, Philo said warningly, murmured because a priestess
of Isis was on board their ship, which they thought would anger the
Phoenician gods of whom the images had been set upon the prow, as might
lawfully be done when a vessel was hired by Tyre or Sidon.
I answered laughing that as he and I knew, Isis could hold her own
against Baal, Astarte, and all their company. Then, changing my mien,
I asked him suddenly what he meant.
"Only this, Holy one," he answered: "That if by chance the ship came
into danger--and I like not the signs of the sky and the moaning of
the black north wind with rocks not two leagues away upon our lee,
then I say if this ship came into danger, as might chance this very
night, for here gales grow suddenly--well, Holy one, you might be in
danger also. In such cases, Holy one, sometimes the Phoenicians demand
a sacrifice to the /Cabiri/, the great gods of the sea whom we do not
worship."
"Is it so?" I answered coldly. "Then tell them that those who demand
sacrifices often furnish the victims. Have no fear, my brother-in-the-
goddess. But if trouble comes, call on me to help you."
Then I stretched out to him the /sistrum/ that was part of my
ornaments of office in which I had been brought aboard that ship, and
he kissed it with his lips and went about his business.
Scarce had he gone when the black north wind began to blow. It blew
fearfully, rising hour by hour and even minute by minute, till the
gale was terrible. The rowers could no longer row, for the great seas
broke their oars, of which the handles struck them, hurling them
backward from the benches, and the sail they tried to hoist upon the
mast was torn away and went flapping down the wind like a wounded
gull. Thus continually the /Hapi/ was driven in toward the coast of
Syria where, still some miles away, the moonlight when it broke out
between the clouds showed the white surf of breakers foaming on the
iron rocks of Carmel.
Toward midnight the tall mast snapped in two like a rotten stick and
went overboard, carrying with it certain men and crushing others. Then
terror took hold of all the company upon this ship, so that they began
to cry aloud who believed that black death was upon them.
Now one shouted,
"We are bewitched! At this season there should be no such gale, it is
against nature."
Another answered,
"Little wonder that we are bewitched when you carry with us a
sorceress of Egypt, one who hates our gods, wherefore they are angry."
This they said because they had heard the tale of the water turned to
blood, also of the oracles I was wont to utter in the temple at
Memphis. For in that city dwelt many Phoenicians who were great talkers
and lovers of strange tales, though now, Holly tells me all their race
is silent for ever and the only tales they hear are those of Gehenna.
Then arose another shout from many throats,
"Sacrifice the witch to the gods of the Sea. Throw her into the sea
that they may take her and we may live to look upon to-morrow's sun!"
Next there was a rush toward the afterpart of the trireme where I was
in the cabin. In the waist of the ship appeared the captain, Philo, as
I saw watching from between the curtains, and with him a number of the
crew who were Egyptians and faithful to him, perhaps six in all, not
more. In his hands Philo held a bow, and a drawn short-sword was
thrust through his belt.
He shouted to the mob of madmen to stand back, but they would not, and
led by one of the guards of Tenes, crept forward. Philo knelt, resting
his back against a water-cask, waiting till the ship steadied herself
a little on the crest of a wave. Then he drew the bow and shot. Very
well and straight did he shoot, for the arrow pierced that leader of
the guard of Tenes from breast to back, so that he fell down dead.
Seeing this, the others grew afraid and stayed where they were,
clinging to the bulwarks of the ship or whatever they could grasp with
their hands.
Tenes appeared among them. They shouted to him and he shouted back to
them, but what they said I could not hear because of the howling of
the wind.
Philo crept into the cabin and his face was very heavy.
"Holy one," he said, "make ready to join Isis in the heavens. Fearing
for his own life, that dog of a Sidonian king has consented to your
sacrifice and I am come to die with you."
"The goddess thanks you, O great-hearted man, and I, her servant,
thank you also," I said, smiling at him. "Yet have no fear, since my
spirit tells me that neither I nor you shall die this night. Help me
now and let us go forth and talk with these hissing snakes of Sidon."
"But what will you say to them, Holy one?"
"The goddess will teach me what to say," I answered, who in truth did
not know what I should say. All I knew was that some spirit moved me
to go forth and to talk with them.
So we went, I leaning upon Philo as it was hard to stand upon my feet,
and came to the stump of the broken mast in the midst of the hollow
ship, all the mob of the crew drawing back before me. Here with one
arm I clung to the mast, and beckoned to them with the other in which
I held the /sistrum/ of our worship. They drew near, Tenes among them,
his face covered by a cloak.
"Hearken!" I cried. "I learn that you would offer me, the Prophetess
of Isis, as a sacrifice to your gods. Fools! Is not Isis greater than
your gods? O Queen of Heaven! send a sign to show that thou art
greater than these foreign gods!"
So I spoke and stared upward at the moon, for the wind had torn away
my veil, and waited.
A great billow came and struck the forepart of the ship, burying it
deep in green water. As she rose I saw two dark forms fly from her
high-tossed prow and a voice cried,
"The guardian images have gone and the sacred fire is quenched!"
"Aye," I answered, "they are gone where you shall go, every one of
you, if you dare to touch me. Know that I do not fear for my own life
which cannot be taken from me, but for your lives I fear, and for
Sidon, which presently shall lack a king--if you dare to touch me. Be
silent now and though you deserve it not, I will pray Isis to save
you."
Then gaping on me standing there like one inspired, as indeed I think
I was, they were struck to silence and through the roaring gale and
flying foam I prayed to Heaven to preserve that ship and those she
bore from the grinding rocks on which the surf beat not a mile away.
A marvel happened, whether because the tempest had grown weary of its
raging, or because That which hears the prayers of men had accepted my
prayer for its own purposes, to this hour I know not. At least the
marvel happened, for although the sea still beat and rushed, wave
following wave, like white-maned, countless charging steeds, of a
sudden the gale died down and there was calm between sky and sea.
"It has pleased the great goddess to hearken to me and to save your
lives, yes, even the lives of you who would have murdered her
priestess," I said in a quiet voice. "Now get you to your oars and row
as never you rowed before, if you would hold the ship off yonder
rocks."
They gasped. They stared with open mouths! One said,
"/Thou/ art the goddess; /thou/ art the very goddess! Pardon us,
pardon us, thy slaves, O Queen of Heaven!"
Then they rushed to their oars and with toil and danger drew the
/Hapi/ past the promontory of Carmel where the water boiled upon the
rocks, and out into the deep sea beyond.
"What did I say to you, Philo?" I said, as he led me back to the
cabin.
He made no answer, only lifting the hem of my garment, he pressed it
to his brow.
CHAPTER VIII
THE KING OF SIDON
Next morning the sun came up in a sky of perfect blue and the /Hapi/,
driven forward by the oars, since her mast was gone, passed northward
over a quiet sea. Not a league away upon our right, gleaming like
gold, were the roofs of the glorious city of Tyre, set like a queen
upon her island throne, Tyre that as yet did not dream of evil days
when her marble palaces should melt in flame and her merchant princes
and citizens lie butchered by the thousand in her streets; Tyre the
wanton, the beauteous, the wealthy, who sucked riches from all the
lands.
Seeing our shattered state, a boat manned by red-capped seamen came
out from the Egyptian harbour to learn if we needed help. But Philo
shouted back to its officer that, save for the loss of a mast and some
men, we had taken no harm in the gale and hoped ere night to be safe
in Sidon.
So the boat returned and we rowed on.
By midday we caught sight of the towers of Sidon and within three more
hours, the sea being calm, had dropped anchor in the southern harbour.
Now after we left Tyre Tenes the King came to visit me in my cabin. At
the sight of him my gorge rose for I remembered that this dog of a
Sidonian had consented to the demand of the sailors that I should be
hurled into the deep as a sacrifice to his god. Yet I restrained my
soul and received him smiling and unveiled.
"Hail, King Tenes," I said, "Isis has been very merciful to you in
answer to my prayer; for know that never again did I think to look
upon you living."
"You are great, Lady," he answered, staring at me with frightened yet
devouring eyes. "I think that you are as great as that Isis whom you
serve, if indeed you are not that Isis come to earth, as they name you
in Egypt. Isis I know not who worship Ashtoreth, she who is also
styled Tanith and Baaltis, and like your Isis, is an acknowledged
Queen of Heaven, but you I know, and your power, for did you not cause
the terrible tempest to cease last night and save us all from death
upon the rocks of Carmel?"
"Aye, I did this, Tenes, having strength given to me, whence it
matters not. It is strange to think, is it not?"--here I bent forward
and stared him in the eyes--"that on board this ship there are men so
cowardly and so evil that they took counsel to cast me to the deep as
a sacrifice to their gods, and that had they done so, though me, had
they known it, they could not harm, they themselves, every one of
them, would have been that sacrifice?"
Now he writhed and turned colour beneath my glance, but answered,
"Is it so, Lady? Name me those men and they shall be slain."
"Aye, King Tenes, without doubt they shall be slain, every one of
them, since Isis does not forget a threat of murder against her
priestess. Yet I name them not. Where is the need when already those
names are written on the tablets of Heaven? Let them be till Fate
finds them, since I would not have you in your rage stain your hands
with their vile blood. But what would you with me, King?"
"You know well," he answered thickly. "I worship you. I am mad with
love of you. When I saw you standing by the broken mast and making
prayer, even then upon the edge of doom, my heart melted for you. I
say that there is a raging fire in my breast that only you can
quench," and he made as though he would fall upon his knees before me.
I motioned to him to remain seated, and answered,
"I remember, King, that you spoke in this same fashion before the
storm and that, half in jest, I wrote certain terms upon which I would
become your queen, namely, when you could give me rule over all the
earth. Wisely, perhaps, to these terms you would not set your seal;
indeed you asked me why you should not take me to be your toy, and to
that question an answer came to you last night when the ship wallowed
water-logged and on her lee you saw the billows spouting on the rocks
of Carmel. Also the goddess has told me more of what would chance to
you should you dare to lift a hand against her priestess. I tell you
that it is horrible, so horrible that I spare you, since if you heard
it, you would tremble. What need to talk of such a crime when such a
judgment would follow hard upon its heels? So have done, Tenes, and
learn that it is my pleasure to return to Egypt in this ship."
"Nay, nay!" he cried, "I cannot part with you; sooner would I lose my
crown. I tell you that if I lost sight of you and hope of you, I
should go mad----"
"Which perchance you may do yet, Tenes," I replied laughing, "if
indeed you are not already mad after the fashion of tyrants who for
the first time are robbed of that which they desire. You have my
commands, so have done. I would speak with Philo the captain as to
when he can be ready to sail for Nile."
"Hearken, Lady, hearken!" he said thickly. "I have the writing here. I
will sign it in your presence if you swear to abide by it."
"Is it so? Well, Tenes, I do not change my word. When you can crown me
Queen of Phoenicia, Egypt, Persia, and the rest, as I can show you how
to do, then I will take you for husband and reign as your sole wife.
But until then never shall you dare so much as to touch me. Now I am
weary, who last night slept so ill. Do you wish to seal the writing,
for if so it shall be done before a witness whose life and welfare
henceforth shall be as sacred to you as my own."
"Aye, aye, I will seal, I will seal," he said.
Then I clapped my hands and the slave who waited without appeared. I
bade him summon Philo, the captain of the ship, and to bring wax.
Presently Philo came and I told him what was needed of him. More,
demanding the papyrus from Tenes, I read it to both of them, Philo
listening with a stony stare of amazement. Then the wax was spread
upon the papyrus and Tenes sealed it with his seal, which was a
cylinder of lapis lazuli having images of gods upon it after the old
Babylonian fashion. Also, beneath my own, he wrote his name in
Phoenician letters which I could not read. Then Philo as witness wrote
his, for being half a Greek, he knew this art, and sealed it with his
seal, a scarab cut in cornelian by no mean artist, doubtless a
Grecian, which scarab, he said, he had taken many years before from
the finger of one whom he killed in battle. When I looked at what it
left upon the wax, I laughed, for behold the device was that of a
Diana, or perchance a nymph, shooting with an arrow a brute-faced faun
that had surprised her at the bath. To my mind the face of that faun
or satyr was very like to the face of Tenes, and Philo thought it also
for I saw him glance from one to the other, and heard him mutter, "An
omen! An omen!" beneath his breath in the Egyptian tongue which Tenes
did not understand.
When the roll was signed Tenes would have taken it, but I answered,
"Nay, on that day when its conditions are fulfilled it shall be yours.
But till then it is mine."
Still I promised to give him a copy of the writing, and with this he
was, or feigned to be, content.
When Philo had gone Tenes asked me how he was to become ruler of the
world and thus to win me.
I answered that I would tell him later in Sidon after I had thought
and prayed. But one thing he must swear, namely, to listen to no
counsels save my own, since otherwise he might lose me and with me
all. He did so by his gods, being at that time so bemused that he
would have sworn anything if thereby he might keep near to me.
Moreover, he told me that it was his purpose to set me in a palace
near his own, or perchance in a part of his own, that there he might
visit me daily and learn my counsels.
I bowed my head and said, the more often the better, so long as he
came for counsel and no more. Then I dismissed him and he went like
any slave.
When he had gone once more I summoned Philo and, "under the wings of
the goddess," that is, under an oath of secrecy to break which is
death, I told him, my brother-in-Isis, the meaning of this play,
namely that I would be avenged upon Tenes who had affronted me and the
goddess, who also, in his cowardice, had proposed to sacrifice me in
the deep, an offering to his false divinities. Moreover, I gave him
that copy of the writing which I had made and, his charter being
fulfilled, bade him get back to Egypt as soon as might be and deliver
it to Noot, the high-priest of Isis, and with it all this story.
There at Memphis I bade him bide, having a great ship, this one or
another, ready, manned with brave men, all of them followers of Isis,
with whom Noot would furnish him, also with the moneys needful to hire
or buy that ship. There he was to wait till my word came. How it would
come I did not know as yet. Perchance this would be by messenger, or
perchance I should talk with the spirit of Noot, by means at the
command of those initiated in the highest mysteries of the goddess. At
least when my word came he must sail at once and come to me at Sidon.
These things he swore to do. Moreover, I wrote a letter which
afterward I gave to him to deliver to Noot.
We cast anchor in the harbour, hoisting the royal standard of Tenes as
best we could on a tall pole at the prow. At once gilded barges, on
board of which were generals and priests, put off from the quay, and
watching from my cabin, I saw Tenes talk earnestly with these notables
who from time to time glanced toward where I was hidden. Then a
messenger came to pray me to be pleased to abide on board the ship
till preparation had been made to receive me, a matter to which the
king departed to attend. So I stayed there and spoke with Philo about
many things, learning from him much concerning the Sidonians, their
wealth and their strength in war.
Two hours later a barge arrived, the royal barge, I think, for it was
glorious with silks and gold and the rowers wore blazoned uniforms. On
board this barge was Tenes himself and with him, among others, priests
who wore tall caps, also some priestesses. The king came and bowing,
led me to a carpeted ladder by which I descended into the barge. As I
went down its steps I said with a laugh,
"If some had won their way last night, O King, I should have left this
ship in a very different fashion. Well, I forgive them, poor fools and
cowards, but whether the goddess whom I serve will forgive them is
another matter"--words at which I saw him wince.
Before I went also I stepped aside and again spoke to Philo who stood
near the head of the ladder, cap in hand. That speech was short yet
sufficient, being of but two words,
"Remember everything."
"To the death! Child of Wisdom," he answered.
"What says the mariner?" asked Tenes suspiciously.
"Naught, O King. That is, he only prays me to intercede with the
goddess lest the fate of those who would have harmed me on this ship
should overtake him also who is its captain."
Again Tenes winced and again I smiled.
We were rowed ashore, and there upon the quay waited a chariot drawn
by milk-white horses in which chariot I was seated, splendidly
apparelled men leading the horses. In front of me went the king in
another chariot and behind followed an escort of guards.
Thus we proceeded through the glorious streets of Sidon and being
moved thereto, I lifted my veil and stood up in the chariot as though
I would see these better. Already the fame of my coming had spread
abroad, so that those streets and the flat roofs of the houses were
crowded with thousands of the people. These, when they saw my beauty,
gasped with wonder and cried in their own tongue,
"No woman! No woman! A goddess indeed!"
Yet I thought that I heard others answer,
"Aye, a false goddess sent to Sidon to be her ruin."
True words indeed, though, as I think, inspired by hate and jealousy
rather than from on high.
We came to a great and noble square, the Holy Place it was called,
round which stood statues of those whom the Sidonians worshipped,
Baal, Ashtoreth, and the rest of their daemons. Moreover, with its back
to the temple stood a huge and hideous god of brass, who in front of
him, upon great hands which seemed to be discoloured with fire, held a
curved tray whereof the inner edge rested on an opening in the belly
of the figure. I asked of one who walked by the chariot what was the
name of this god. He answered,
"Dagon whom some call Moloch, to whom the firstborn are sacrificed by
fire. See, the priests are storing the hollow place beneath with wood.
Soon, doubtless, there will be a great offering."
Thenceforward I hated this people, for what could one born in Arabia
and a servant of Isis, the holy and gentle, think of a race that
offered sacrifice of those born of them to a daemon? Yes, I looked on
their faces, keen, handsome, and cruel, and hated them, one and all.
We came to the door of the palace where slaves ran forward, assisting
me from the chariot. By it stood Tenes surrounded with glittering
nobles and white-robed priests who stared at me doubtfully.
"Be pleased to enter my house, Lady, fearing nothing, for there you
shall be well lodged and given of the best that Sidon has to offer,"
said Tenes.
"I thank you," I answered, bowing and letting fall my veil, "and I
doubt it not, for what less than her best could Sidon give to the
Daughter of Isis, the Queen of Heaven?"
Yes, thus I answered proudly, I who played a great game and staked all
upon a throw.
"Here we have another Queen of Heaven and she is not named Isis," I
heard one of the dark-browed priests mutter to a companion, thinking
that I did not understand his words.
They led me into a glorious dwelling wherein were chambers more
splendid than any that I had seen in my journeys through the Eastern
world. Gold and gems were everywhere and on the walls hung priceless
trappings dyed with the Tyrian purple of that costly sort to use which
is the prerogative of kings. The very carpets on the floors shone like
silk and were woven to things of beauty, while the lamps seemed to be
hollowed from great gems.
"Who lodges in this place?" I asked of a slave when I was alone.
"Who but the Queen Beltis, divine one," answered the slave, bowing low
before me.
"Where then is the Queen Beltis? I see her not."
"Nay, divine one, she visits her father at Jerusalem, whence she
should return shortly. Indeed, the King has issued orders that other
chambers should be prepared for her against her coming."
"Is it so?" I replied indifferently, but within my heart I wondered
what this queen would say when she came to find her place inhabited by
a stranger and a rival.
Then to the sound of sweet music I ate from services of gold and drank
out of jewelled cups, and afterward, being weary, who had rested
little on that ship and was tempest-tossed, laid me down to sleep in a
soft and scented bed guarded by women and by eunuchs.
"Easy enough," thought I to myself, "would it be for these to murder
me, one unfriended and alone in a strange land," and because of this
for a little felt afraid who at that time was but as other mortals
are. On the ship I had feared nothing, for there was Philo, a brother
of my faith, and with him some others who could be trusted. But here I
was but as a lamb ringed round with wolves. Moreover, besides the
wolves there was a lion, the king-brute Tenes, who sought to snare me,
and whom I knew for a liar, not to be trusted whatever he might swear.
Yes, for a little while, perhaps for the first time in my life, and
certainly for the last, that is, where my body was at stake, I felt
somewhat afraid, so much so that I went to a window-place to watch the
rising of the moon and to make my prayer to Isis of whom it was the
symbol, that she would be pleased to protect me in this city whither
by her will I had wandered.
This window looked out upon that flame-lit square which was called the
Holy Place. There I noted that thousands of those of Sidon were
gathered, some of them staring up at the palace to which it was known
I had been taken, pointing and talking. The most of them, however,
wandered round the great brazen statue, that hideous, devil-faced
thing whereof I have written, and when they could, caught one of the
priests by the arm and put questions to him.
Among these, I noticed, were many women, some of whom from their mien
seemed to be noble, whose faces were strange to see. Defiant they
were, yet in a way proud, as might be the faces of those about to do
some great deed. Moreover, many of these women led or carried
children, which little ones they showed to the priests who smiled
horribly and nodded approval, patting the children on the arm and even
kissing them.
One lady, after her son had received such a kiss, wailed aloud and,
clasping him to her breast, turned and fled away, whereon the priest
cursed her and the other women shouted "Shame!" then strove to cover
up the misery that peeped out of their eyes by singing some fierce
song in honour of their gods.
Studying this scene, presently the meaning of it came home to me.
Those children were doomed to be sacrificed to the brazen Dagon or
Moloch whereof I remembered having heard in Jerusalem as a devil to
whom the firstborn were passed through the fire. Yes, and these the
mothers had brought them there that they might look upon the god and
grow accustomed to the sight of him.
Oh! it was horrible, and my heart chilled at the thought of such
iniquity. What reward from Heaven, I marvelled, for a people who
practised such a faith?
As I marvelled an answer seemed to come to me. The sun had sunk but
there were heavy clouds in the sky above upon which struck its
departing rays. Thence they were reflected on to the city and chiefly
upon this Holy Place, as it was called, and the brazen image that sat
there before the temple. Yes, from those clouds came red light that
filled the air and the city beneath and the Holy Place, as it were
with a mist of blood. It was as though everything were dyed with
blood, and in the midst, ringed round with torches, glowed Moloch, a
god of blood!
Then I knew that Sidon was doomed to be drowned in blood; that such
was the decree of Heaven and that I, Ayesha, was the instrument
appointed to loose this spear of death upon her beauteous, sinful
breast. I shivered at the thought, I who love not cruelty or to spend
the lives of men, though it was true that I would kill Tenes. Yet what
was I but the lightning in the hands of Fate, and can the lightning
choose where it will strike? Must it not fall whither it is drawn? To
this end had I been sent to earth, namely that I might bring woe upon
false Egypt and the peoples who clung to her.
Such was the burden of that dream by which my sleep was haunted, such
too the command of Heaven which again and again Noot the prophet had
whispered in my ear. I must destroy Egypt, or rather her apostate
priests and rulers, and afterward once more build up the worship of
Isis in some far land that should be revealed to me. Such was my
mission, whereof it was decreed that I should fulfil the first part
and because of my sin leave the rest undone.
Holly the learned tells me that the new faith he follows, to which I
will not listen who am weary of religions and their changeful march
toward a changeless end, writes it down that free will is given to
man, that he is able to choose this path and reject the other; that he
is the master of his own soul which he can guide here or there as the
horseman guides his steed or Philo steered his ship.
And yet he read to me from the writings of one of the great apostles
of that faith, a certain holy one named Paulus, words which declared
that man is predestined ere he was born to eternal life or eternal
death, to the glory of the light or the unfathomed dark. To me these
doctrines seem to war one upon the other, though for aught I knew both
may be true, seeing that within the circle of the starry spheres and
the vast soul of That which made them, there is room for a multitude
of truths whereof the shadows falling upon the gross earth take a
thousand shapes of error.
Moreover, I hold that whatever is, is true because it is, and that men
do but tangle themselves in seeming differences that are only varying
lights darting from the eternal eyes of Truth. On all hearts shine
those eyes, but none beholds them as his brother does, for to each
they burn as a separate torch of different-coloured flame. Therefore
it is that men worship many gods not knowing that these are the same
God whose hands hold all things.
Thus I sum up the matter. At least through the millions of the ages
and the multitudes of lives man may attain to freedom if his face be
set that way of his own desire. Yet in his little hour on the earth,
that falsely he believes his all, looking from birth to death and the
blackness that bounds them both, he is not free but a part of
Strengths that are greater than his own. Have I, Ayesha, been free, I
who chose the holy path and fell from it into Nature's gulfs? Did I
desire to fall? Did I not desire to climb that steep road to the
heights of Heaven and sit enthroned upon the topmost snows of purity
and peace? And yet another Might hurled me thence and now it is my
fate to climb again; by slow and painful steps to climb eternally.
But of these things I will speak in their season, telling what is the
price those pay who seek to overleap the bounds that hem us in and to
match their pettiness against divine decree.
These in the midst of the red light that filled Sidon like a bowl with
blood and shone on me and all; on me, the priestess, on the brazen
Dagon towering up against me, on fantastic, lamp-lit, temples and
palaces, on the great place about which they stood and the fierce-
faced multitude that wandered on its marble pavements, there in the
window-opening I knelt me down and prayed, lifting my face to the pure
heavens above. To Isis did I pray, as an idolater prays to an image in
a cave, because Isis was my symbol, or rather to That which is as far
above Isis as Isis was above me. For I prayed to the Soul of that
Universe whereof my eyes could see a part in the arching skies, and of
this Soul what was Isis but one golden thread in a glittering garment
that wraps the majesty of God? And what then was I and what were those
fierce-faced worshippers of Dagon?
Oh! in that hour of dedication, for such I felt it to be, these truths
came home to my heart as never they had done before. And this was the
sum of them, that I and all I could see and know were but as
impalpable grains of dust, not sufficient to cause the delicately hung
balance wherein the wilfulness of the world is poised against the
decrees of the immortal Law to vary by a hair's breadth. Still I
prayed and because that which is small yet contains that which is
smaller, and the smaller finds a god in the small, as the small does
in the great, from that prayer I won comfort.
My prayer finished I laid me down to rest in the golden bed of Beltis,
the queen into whose place I had been thrust, bethinking me how many
and near were the dangers by which I was surrounded. That brute king
desired me for a prey and here in his palace I lay in the hollow of
his hand. He had the key to all my doors; the servants who stood about
them were his creatures whom at a nod he could send to death. I was a
stranger in a strange land, utterly unfriended, for Philo was far off
upon his ship; there was nothing between me and him save the
impalpable veil of fear which I had woven between us by the strength
of my spirit. I was a prize to be taken, unarmoured, without javelin
or arrow to protect me, with nothing, nothing save that veil of fear.
If he chose to break through it, daring my curse and that of my
goddess, he could do so. Then the curse would fall indeed, but it
would be too late to save me, and I the proud and pure, must pass
hence defiled, as pass I would. Still trusting to the goddess, or
rather to the part of her which dwelt in me, or to That which was
above us both, I laid me down and slept.
At midnight I awoke. The light of the moon flowing through the window-
places flooded the splendid chamber, catching on the cornices of gold,
the polished mirrors and the silver vessels. The door opened and
through it wrapped in a dark cloak came Tenes. Though his face was
hidden I knew him by his heavy shape and shambling step. He crept
toward me like a wolf upon a sleeping lamb. There I lay in the golden
bed illumined by the moon, and watched through the web of my
outstretched hair, my hand upon the dagger that was buckled to my
girdle. He drew near, he bent over me breathing heavily, and his eyes
devoured my beauty. Still I feigned sleep and watched him, while my
fingers closed upon the handle of the dagger. He unbuckled his cloak,
revealing his hook-nosed visage, and a draught of wind seemed to catch
it, for it flapped and fell from his shoulders, though I felt no wind.
He stooped as though to lift it, and it would seem came face to face
with I know not what. Perchance it was the goddess invisible to me.
Perchance it was some picture of his own death to come. I cannot say.
At least his shifting eyes sank in till they seemed to vanish beneath
the hairy brows, and his fat cheeks grew pallid as though the blood
were draining from them by a mortal wound. Words came hissing from his
thick lips and they were,
"Horrible! Horrible! She is indeed divine, for gods and ghosts protect
her! Horrible! Death walks the air!"
Then he reeled from the room dragging the cloak after him, and knowing
that I had no more to fear, I returned thanks to the guardian spirits
and slept sweetly. The danger that I dreaded had drawn near and passed
--to return no more.
CHAPTER IX
DAGON TAKES HIS SACRIFICE
The sun arose on Sidon and drove away the terrors of the dark. I too
arose and was led to the bath by slaves. Then those slaves clothed me
in the silks of Cyprus, over which I threw a new veil bordered with
the purple of Tyre. More, they brought me gifts from the King,
priceless jewels, pearls with rubies and sapphires set in gold. Those
I laid aside who would not wear his gems. Then, in another chamber, I
ate as before of meats delicately served by bowing maidens. Scarce had
I finished my meal of fish from the sea and fruit and snow-cooled
water drunk from a crystal cup, when a eunuch came saying the King
Tenes craved audience of me.
"Let him enter," I answered.
Presently he stood before me, making salutation, and asked me with
feigned carelessness whether I had rested well.
"Aye, great King," I answered, "well enough, save for a single, very
vivid dream. I dreamed that Set, the god of Evil, rose out of the
darkness of hell wearing the shape of a man whose face I could not
see, and that this fiend would have seized me and dragged me down into
the pit of hell. I was afraid, and while I lay as one in a net, there
came to me a vision of the divine Isis who said,
"'Where is thy faith, Daughter? If I saved thee on the ship, giving
thee the lives of all her company, cannot I save thee now and always?
Fiends shall not harm thee, nor men; swords shall not pierce thee nor
fires burn, and if any would lay hands on thee, on them I give thee
power to call down my vengeance and to cast them to the jaws of the
Devourer who, awaiting evil-doers, watches ever in the black depth of
death.'
"Then in my dreams the Mother whispered into the ears of that fiend
shaped like a man, and passing her hand before his eyes, showed him
certain visions, though what these were I know not. At the least they
caused him to wail aloud with terror, also to my sight to fall as from
a precipice and, like some foul vulture pierced by an archer's shaft,
go whirling down, down, and down, into gulfs that had no bottom. It
was a very evil dream, King Tenes, and yet sweet, because it told me
that though I should journey to the ends of the earth, still I shall
not pass out of the shelter of the circling arms of Isis."
"Evil indeed, Lady," he said hoarsely, biting his lips to still the
quaver in his voice. "Yet it ended well, so what of dreams?"
"Very well, O King--for me. And as for dreams, I, who by gifts and
training am skilled in their interpretations, hold that for the most
part they are a shadow of the Truth. I know that certainly no harm can
come to me in your palace over which one day I must rule, or in your
city where I am a guest. Yet doubtless some peril of the spirit did
threaten me last night, and by the help of Heaven was brought to
nothing."
"Doubtless, doubtless! though of such matters /I/ know nothing, who
deal with the things of earth, not with those of Heaven. But, Lady, I
came to tell you that this day there is a great sacrifice on the Holy
Place yonder, and that from these windows you will be able to watch it
well. It is to propitiate our gods that they may well give us victory
in the war against the Persians."
"Is it so, King? But where are the victims? I see no kine, nor sheep,
nor doves, such as are offered in Rome and in Jerusalem, or even
flowers and fruit such as in Egypt we lay upon our gentler altars."
"Nay, Lady; here we make more costly offerings, tithing our own blood.
Yes, here Moloch claims the fruit of our bodies, taking them to his
purifying fires so that their innocent breath may rise as a sweet
savour to the nostrils of the devouring and protecting gods."
"Do you, perchance, mean children, King?"
"Aye, Lady, children, many children, and among these to-day one of my
own, a son of a certain Beltis who is of my household. He is a child
of promise, yet I grudge him not to the god if thereby my people may
be benefited."
"And does this Beltis not grudge him, King?"
"I know not," he answered sullenly. "She is a woman of the royal House
of Israel and is absent on a journey. Therefore I know not, and when
she returns the boy will have joined the gods and it will be too late
for her to make trouble concerning him, should she be so minded."
Now horror took hold of me, Ayesha, and my soul sickened.
"King Tenes," I said, "bethink you of that mother's heart and, I pray
you, spare this child."
"How can I, Lady? Must not the king bear that yoke which is laid upon
the necks of his people? If I spare him, would not the mothers of
Sidon whose young have passed into the fire spit at me and curse me--
aye, and tear me to pieces if they might? Nay, he must die with the
rest. The priests have so decreed."
"On your head be it, King," I said and choked in my loathing of him.
Then a thought took me, and I cried to those who were gathered about
the door of the chamber, captains of the guard, eunuchs, slaves,
scribes, and a priest or two,
"Come hither, ye of Sidon, and hearken to the words of her who in
Egypt is named /Oracle-of-Isis/."
They came, drawn by wonder, or perchance because my strength compelled
them.
"Take note of my words and record them," I said, while they stared on
me. "Take note and forget it not, that I, the daughter of Isis, have
made prayer to King Tenes of Sidon, that he will spare the life of his
son and the son of a lady named Beltis, and that he has refused my
prayer. Ye have heard me. It is enough. Go!"
They went, looking at each other, the scribes, as I saw, writing down
what I had said upon their tablets. Tenes also stared at me curiously.
"You are an Arab by birth, born of an Egyptian mother, and wholly
Egyptian in your faith and mind, though the Arab courage still strikes
through these qualities," he said. "Therefore I forgive you who do not
understand our customs. Yet, know, Lady, that those of Sidon whom it
pleases you to call as witnesses will think you mad."
"Doubtless, Tenes, before all is done, those of Sidon will think many
things of me, as you will also. But what will this lady Beltis think?"
"I neither know nor care who weary of Beltis and her moods," he
answered, scowling. "Beauteous one, I sent you jewels. Why do you not
wear them?"
"The daughter of Isis wears no jewels save those the goddess gives
her, King. Yet yours shall go to enrich her shrines when I return to
Egypt, and in her name I thank you for them, bounteous King."
"Aye, when you return to Egypt. But how can you return if you bide
here as my wife?"
"If I bide here as your wife, then I shall bide as the Queen of Egypt
as is written in our bond, and from time to time the Queen of Egypt
must visit her dominions, King, and give thanks to the goddess for her
advancement. Do you understand?"
"I understand that you are a very strange woman, so strange that I
would I had never set eyes on you and your accursed beauty," he
answered in a rage.
"What! So soon?" I said, laughing. "That this should be so in the
beginning makes me wonder what you will wish in the end. Why not take
your eyes off me and have done, King Tenes?"
"Because I cannot. Because I am bewitched," he answered furiously, and
rising left me, while I laughed and laughed.
He departed and I went to the window-place to breathe air free from
the poison of his presence. There I saw that the Holy Place beneath
was already filled with tens of thousands of the Sidonians. I saw,
moreover, that priests were engaged in lighting fire at the foot of
the great brazen image of Dagon, which fire seemed to burn within the
image, since smoke poured out far above from an opening in his head.
Moreover, by degrees the copper plates of which its vast and hideous
bulk was built up grew red with heat, so that the upper part of it
became one glowing furnace.
White-robed priests, gathered in troops, began to offer prayers and
celebrate rites of which I did not know the meaning. They bowed
themselves to the image, they gashed their arms with knives and
catching the blood that fell from them in shallow shells of the sea,
cast it into the fire. Orators made speeches, prophets uttered
prophecies. Bands of fair women appeared naked to the middle and
having their breasts gilded, who danced wildly before the god.
Then suddenly there was a great silence and from the mouth of some
gateway that I could not see, because it lay almost beneath the
balconies of the palace, appeared the King Tenes clad in gorgeous,
sacerdotal robes, those, I think, of the high-priest of Baal. With him
was a woman who led by the hand a little boy who perhaps had seen
three summers, dressed in white with a garland of flowers about his
neck. Tenes bowed to the glowing image and cried in a loud voice,
"People of Sidon, I the King make sacrifice of my son to Dagon the
great god, that Dagon may be propitiated and Sidon may conquer in this
war. O Dagon, take my son that his spirit may pass through the flames
and be gathered to thy spirit and that thine appetite may feed upon
his blood."
At these words a great and joyous shout went up from the tens of
thousands of people, and in the midst of the shout Tenes bent down and
kissed his son, which was the only kindly, human thing that ever I saw
him do. The child, affrighted, clung to his robes, but the woman at
his side snatched the boy away and ran with him, struggling, to a
priest who stood by the foot of a little iron ladder of which the top
rested against the outstretched giant hands of the glowing image.
The priest took the child from the woman, holding him aloft that the
multitude might see him and know him for the very son of the king. Oh!
never shall I forget the look upon that child's face as he was thus
held aloft in the hands of the brutal priest who stood upon the lower
rungs of the ladder. He had ceased to scream, but his ruddy cheeks
were blanched, his black eyes seemed to start from his head, and his
little hands grasped emptily at the air or were lifted up to heaven,
which indeed was near to him, as though in supplication for
deliverance from the cruelty of man.
The priest climbed the ladder, bearing the child, and I noted a kind
of metal covering upon his breast and head, set there to shield him
from the heat of the fiery idol.
He reached the platform of the outstretched hands. The child's fingers
clung to his garments, but he tore them free and with a cry of triumph
let fall the little body into the hollow of the hot hands. Then, to
drown the victim's cries, priests standing below began to play upon
instruments of music, as they played, singing some hymn to the god. I
saw the little arms tossed aloft above the edge of the hollow of the
brazen hands. Then I saw those arms lift themselves, feebly for the
last time, and that poor, tortured, innocent babe rolled slowly into
the red abyss beneath, while the savage multitude screamed its delight
to heaven.
This royal sacrifice was accomplished, yet it was but the first of
many, for woman after woman brought her child, or sometimes it was a
man who brought it, and babe after babe was thrown upon the red-hot
hands and rolled thence into the flames beneath. All the while the
priests played upon their instruments and sang their songs while the
shameless priestesses, and others, those with the gilded breasts,
danced lewdly, tossing up their white arms, and the thousands of the
people of Sidon, filled with the lust of blood, roared aloud in their
drunken joy, and the poor mothers, now that the deed was done, crept
thence, laughing and crying both together, back to their desolated
homes, there to stare at the cots emptied into "the bosom of the god."
At length I could bear no more of this scene of hell, and departing to
my sleeping-chamber, caused women to draw curtains over the window-
places and having dismissed them, sat myself down and thought.
A great rage filled me, Ayesha, who have ever loved children--will a
day come when I shall nurse one upon my breast, I wonder, and if so in
what star will it be born?--and a mighty hate of those accursed
Sidonians. All pity left my heart, even for the young who would grow
up to be as were those who begat them. These sharks and tigers loved
blood. Good. They should be filled with blood, their own blood. All of
them were guilty, all, all were murderers. Hearken to their horrible
rejoicings! Old men and maidens, young men and matrons, the toothless
crone and the budding girl, the great lords and ladies, the toilers on
the deep and the traders of the city, the bond and the free, from the
king down to the meanest slave, all of them screamed with hideous
rejoicing as babe after babe was swallowed by the glowing gorge of the
daemon they named a god. Therefore I vowed by Isis that all of them
should pay the price of this innocent blood and go down to find their
god in hell. Yes, I swore it by the Mother and by my own outraged
soul!
The next day Beltis came. The King Tenes was in my outer chamber
fawning on me and watching me out of his crafty eyes, as I saw through
the veil that I had let fall over my face, and my flesh crept at the
sight of him. Trained though I was and wise though I was, who knew
well that the hour had not come to strike, scarce could I bear him
near me who longed to drive my dagger through his lying throat. Yet I
sat still and listened to his flattery and answered him with double-
edged and mocking words of which he could not read the meaning. He
told me that already the great sacrifice had borne good fruit, since
tidings had come of a new victory over the vanguard of the Persians,
in which five thousand of the men of Ochus had perished.
I answered that I doubted not it would bear yet better fruit, then
asked him how many of his folk dwelt in Sidon.
He answered, some sixty thousand.
"Then, O King," I said, "I who am filled with the spirit of the
Mother, make a prophecy to you, I prophesy that in reward of the piety
of this people of yours who do not grudge their own children to the
gods, the gods will take sixty thousand lives from among the wicked of
the earth who worship fire--as I am told these Persians do."
"That is a good saying, Lady," he said, rubbing his fat hands, "though
it is true that some might say that we Sidonians also worship fire, or
rather Moloch whose belly is filled with flame as we saw yesterday."
Now while we were speaking and this brute bemused was talking thus
almost at hazard, for his mind was set on me only, I noted that those
who attended him slipped from the place, taking with them the waiting
women and closing the carven doors behind them, so that he and I were
now alone. Guessing that this was done by order, I knew that I must
prepare for some outburst of the man's passion and took counsel with
myself. What it was does not matter because of that which followed.
Already he had begun, for the words, "O most beauteous!" had passed
his lips when the door burst open and through it came a noble-looking
woman. She was tall, dark, and handsome with swift-glancing, tragic
eyes, as I knew at once, a Jewess, since I had seen others like her in
Jerusalem. She glanced at me as though wondering what my veil hid, and
advancing, stood before Tenes. He had not heard her come or seen her,
his mind being full of other matters and his back toward the doorway.
At the sound of her feet he turned and, coming face to face with her,
stepped backward three paces with a frightened face and uttering some
Phoenician curse.
"Have you returned so soon, Beltis?" he asked. "What has brought you
here before the appointed time?"
"My heart, O Tenes, king and husband. Yonder in Jerusalem a prophet of
Jehovah said words to me that caused me to return and swiftly. Tell
me, Tenes, where is our son? On my path to this chamber I passed
through those where he should be and found him not. All I found was
his nurse weeping; aye, so choked with tears that she could not answer
my question. Where is our son, Tenes?"
Now he cast his eyes about him like one who finds himself in a snare,
and answered thickly,
"Alas! Lady, the gods have taken our son."
She gasped and clasped her hands upon her heart, saying, or rather
moaning,
"How did they take him, Husband?"
He looked through the window-place at the hideous brazen image dulled
with heat and blackened by smoke; he looked at the lady with the white
face and the terrible eyes. Then he strove to speak, but as it seemed,
could not, for the mumbled words choked each other in his throat.
"Answer!" she said coldly, but he could not, or would not answer.
Then my spirit moving me, I played a part in this ineffable tragedy.
Yes, I, Ayesha, threw back my veil, saying,
"Queen, if it pleases you to listen I will tell you how your son
died."
She looked at me wondering, and asked like one who dreams,
"Is this a woman or a goddess, or perchance a spirit? Speak on, woman,
or goddess, or spirit."
"Queen," I said, "look through the window-place and tell me what you
see."
"I see the image of Dagon, the brazen image towering to the housetops,
blackened with fire and staring at me with empty eyes, and beyond it
the temple and above it Heaven."
"Queen, yesterday I looked from this window-place and saw that image
of Dagon, only then from those empty eyes came flame. Also I saw King
Tenes lead out a beauteous, black-eyed boy of three summers or so,
which boy he declared to be his son. This boy he gave to a woman,
although the child clung wailing to his robe. The woman gave him to a
priest. The priest climbed a ladder--look, there it stands--and laid
him upon the red-hot hands of the idol whence he rolled amidst the
plaudits of the people into a womb of fire, to be perchance reborn in
Heaven."
Beltis heard and as she heard her face seemed to freeze into a mask of
ice. Then she stared at Tenes and asked almost in a whisper,
"Are these things so, O dog of a Sidonian, that like a dog can devour
your own flesh?"
"The god claimed him," he mumbled, "and like others I must give when
the god claims, that victory may crown our arms. Who can deny the god?
Rejoice, O mother, that he has been pleased to accept that which was
born of you."
So he mumbled on as priests patter to their idols, till at length in
that cold silence his voice died away.
Then Beltis the Queen began to hiss a curse at him, such a curse as,
save once only, I have never heard come from the lips of woman. In the
Name of Jehovah, God of the Jews, she cursed him, calling down woe and
desolation upon his head, consigning him to death in blood and
appointing Gehenna, as she named hell, as a resting-place for his
soul, where devils fashioned as children should tear him eternally
with hooks of flame. Yes, she cursed him living and dead, but always
in that low, whispering voice, that inhuman voice which did not seem
to come from the throat of woman, such a voice as the gods or spirits
use when from time to time they speak to their servants in the inmost
sanctuaries.
He cowered before her. Once even he sank to his knees, holding his
hands above his head as though to ward off her words of evil omen.
Then, as she would not cease, he sprang up, shouting,
"You also shall be a sacrifice, you worshipper of the God of the Jews.
Dagon is greater than the God of the Jews. Be you a sacrifice to him,
O Sorceress of Israel!"
He drew the sword at his side and shook it. She did not stir, only
with her hands she tore open the robes upon her breast, saying,
"Smite on, dog of a Sidonian, and complete the circle of your crimes.
Where the son went, there let the mother follow!"
Now in madness, or in rage, or in terror, he lifted the sword and was
about to do the deed, when I stepped between him and her. Loosing the
veil I wore I threw it over her head, and turning, said to Tenes,
"Now, King, touch her who is hid in the veil of Isis if you dare. Of
Isis I think you have learned something on a certain ship when the
breakers called for you off Carmel, yes, of Isis and her prophetess.
Know then that she who could save can also slay, and give you over to
such dreams as came to you, Tenes, at midnight in a bed in yonder
room. Aye, she can slay, and swiftly. Strike then through the Veil of
Isis and learn whether her prophetess speaks truth."
He looked at me; he looked at Beltis standing still and ghostlike
beneath the veil. Then he cast down the sword and fled.
When he had gone I went to the door and shot its bolt. I returned, I
lifted the veil from about that queen.
"Who and what are you?" she asked, "that can brave Tenes in his palace
and save one whom he would slay, though for that I thank you not. So
little do I thank you that----" And she stooped to grasp the sword.
Moving swiftly as a swallow flies, I flitted between her and it.
Before her fingers could touch it, I had snatched it away who
understood her purpose.
"Be seated, Lady, and listen," I said.
She sank into a chair and, resting her head upon her hand, regarded me
with a cold and curious look.
"Queen," I went on, "I am one whom Heaven has sent to this land to
destroy Tenes and the Sidonians."
"Then I welcome you, Stranger. Speak on."
So briefly I told her all my tale, and in proof of it read to her the
writing in which I promised myself to Tenes when he could crown me
queen of the world.
"So you desire my place and this man?"
"Aye," I answered, "as much, or as little, as life desires death.
Study the conditions. Can he crown me queen of all the earth, and
under them until he does so, can he take me? Do you not understand
that I would lead the fool on to his ruin?"
She nodded her head.
"Then will you not help me?"
"Aye, Lady, but how?"
"I will show you how," and bending forward, I whispered in her ear.
"It is good," she said when I had finished. "By Jehovah my God, and by
the blood of my son, with you I stand or fall, and when all is done
take Tenes if you will."
CHAPTER X
THE VENGEANCE OF BELTIS
So it came about that this queen, whose name I learned was Elisheba
among her own people, the Hebrews, Beltis being a title given to her
in Sidon, and I dwelt together in the palace of Tenes. Leave me she
dared not, nor would I suffer it who knew that then certainly she
would be murdered, while with me she was safe because Tenes dared not
touch one whom I sheltered, being afraid of me; one, moreover, over
whom I had placed the veil of Isis. For the rest she was glad to stay
with me whom soon she learned to love, especially after she had
learned how I pleaded for her son's life.
I, too, was glad that she should do so, both because she was a
companion to my loneliness and a protection, since Tenes could not
persecute me with his passion in her presence, and because she had
those who loved her in Sidon, certain Hebrews through whom we learned
much. Yet we were in a strange case, the queen who reigned and the
queen to whom her place was promised, dwelling together like sisters,
and both sworn to destroy him who was her husband and who desired to
be mine.
For we made a pact together, she swearing by Jehovah and I by Isis,
that we would neither rest nor stay till we saw Tenes dead and his
Sidonians with him. Oh! if I hated him and these, she, the robbed
mother, hated them worse, so deeply indeed that if only she might come
by vengeance she cared nothing for her life. She was a fierce-natured
woman, such as those of the Hebrews often are, and all her heart's
love had been given to this boy, her only child, whom Tenes butchered
at the bidding of the priests and because of his superstitions.
From the beginning this Beltis or Elisheba had hated the Sidonians and
Tenes, to whom she was given in a marriage of policy by the rulers of
Jerusalem because of her beauty and her royal blood, and now to her
they were but as wild beasts and snakes to be destroyed. Yet she was
clever also and played her part well, feigning sorrow for the wild
words she spoke in the hour of her agony and with it obedience to the
wishes of the King. She even told him in my presence that when the
time came she would be willing that I should take her crown and she
but a second place, or if it pleased him better, that she would return
to her own people. This, however, he did not desire, since he feared
lest the disgrace of so great a lady should bring the wrath of
Jerusalem upon him, or even cause the Hebrews to join his enemies.
So well did she play that part, indeed, making it appear that her
spirit was crushed and that she was one from whom there was nothing to
fear, that soon Tenes came to believe that this was so, and in order
to please me he suffered her to dwell on there in peace.
Now I have to tell of the war and of the end of Sidon. First I should
say, however, that before he sailed for Egypt, after the /Hapi/ had
been fitted with a new mast of cedar, I caused Philo to be summoned to
the palace by the help of those Jews who were the friends of Beltis.
He was brought to my presence with two merchants, disguised as one of
their company, and, while Beltis made pretence to chaffer with them
for their costly goods, I spoke with him apart.
I told him to get him to Memphis as quickly as he might, and there
make all ready as we had agreed, awaiting my message. How this would
reach him, or Noot, or both of them, I did not know. It might be by
writing, or by messenger who would bear certain tokens, or it might be
otherwise. At least when it came he must sail at once, and arriving
off the port of Sidon, every night after the setting of the sun and
before its rising, must light a flare of green fire at his masthead,
causing it to burn for the fourth part of an hour, so that I might be
sure that the ship which signal led was his and no other. Then in this
way or in that I would find means to come aboard that vessel, and the
rest was in the hands of the gods.
These things he vowed to do and departed safely with the merchants,
nor did Tenes ever learn that Philo had visited the palace.
Meanwhile Tenes was making mighty preparations for the war. He dug a
triple ditch about Sidon and heightened its walls. He hired ten
thousand Grecian mercenaries and armed the citizens. By help of the
Greeks he drove the Persian vanguard out of Phoenicia, and for a while
all went well for him and Egypt. At length came the news that the vast
army of Ochus was rolling down on Sidon, together with three hundred
triremes and five hundred transports; such an army as Phoenicia had
never seen.
One morning Tenes came to my chamber and told of the march of Ochus,
Beltis withdrawing herself. He was in a very evil case, for he
trembled and even forgot to say sweet words or to devour me with his
eyes after his fashion. I asked him why his hand shook and his lips
were pale, he, who as a warrior king, should be rejoicing at the
prospect of battle. He answered because of a dream he had dreamed, in
which he seemed to see himself defeated by the Persians and cast down
living from the wall of the city. Then he added these words:
"You, Lady, promised to show me how to conquer the world. Do so, I
pray you, for I say that my heart is afraid and I know not how I shall
stand against Ochus."
Now I laughed at him and answered,
"So at last you come to me for counsel, Tenes, who for days have been
wondering for how long you would be content to take that of Mentor of
Rhodes and of the King of Cyprus. Well, what would you learn?"
"I would learn how I may defeat the Persians, Lady, the Persians who
pour upon us like a flood through a broken wall."
"I do not know, Tenes. To me it seems impossible. I think that dream
of yours is coming true, Tenes, that is----" And I ceased.
"What, then, must I do, Lady? What is your meaning?"
"I mean that you are mad to fight Ochus."
"But I am fighting Ochus."
"Those who have been enemies may become friends, King Tenes. Have I
not told you that you would be safer as the ally of Ochus than as his
foe? What is Egypt to you that you should destroy yourself to save
Nectanebes?"
"Egypt may be little, Lady, but Sidon is much. The Sidonians are
pledged to this war and the hand of Ochus might be heavy on them."
Again I laughed and answered,
"Which is dearer to a man, his own life or those of others? Fight and
die if you will, O King; or make peace and perchance let others die if
you will, O King. They say that Ochus is generous and knows how to
reward those who serve him."
"Do you mean that I should make a pact with him and betray my people?"
he asked hoarsely.
"Aye, my words may be so read. Hearken. You have great ambitions. You
would win the world--and me. My wisdom tells me that only thus can you
win the world--and me. Continue this war, and very soon you will lose
me and all that you command of Earth shall be such small part of it as
hides your bones. Now make your choice and trouble me no more, who in
truth find little joy in timid hearts that fear to take hold of
opportunity. Therefore, follow your counsel or my own, I care not
which who would be gone back to Egypt to seek a higher destiny than
that of consort to a conquered slave."
"Whatever I may lose, you I cannot lose," he said slowly. "Also your
mind is mine. This Persian is too strong for me, and on Egypt I cannot
lean too hard lest it break beneath me. These Sidonians, also, are
rebellious and murmur against me. I think that they would kill me if
they dared, who now call me Child-murderer because I gave my son in
sacrifice to please the priests."
"Mayhap, King," I answered carelessly, "since mobs are fickle. I
repeat that the wise man and he who would be great does not think of
others but of himself."
"I will consult with my General, Mentor the Greek, for he is far-
sighted," he said, and left me.
"The poison works," I thought to myself as I watched him go. Then I
called Beltis and told her all that had passed between her lord and
me. She listened and asked,
"Why do you lead Tenes down this road, Ayesha?"
"Because of the pit at the end of it," I answered. "Have not your
spies told us that this Ochus is implacable? He will make a pact with
Tenes and then he will destroy him. Such at least is the counsel that
comes to me from Heaven, which he has angered, as I think."
"Then I pray that Tenes may follow it, Ayesha, so long as it hurls him
down to hell, and the Sidonians with him."
As it chanced he did, for it was of a sort that his false heart loved.
The rest may be told in few words. Tenes sent his minister,
Thessalion, another crafty fellow, to make a treaty with Ochus. These
were the terms of this treaty: That he, Tenes, should surrender Sidon
and in payment receive the royalty of Egypt after it had been
conquered, and of all Phoenicia also, and with it that of Cyprus. Ochus
swore these gifts to him and continued his advance. When he reached a
certain spot, he halted. Then Tenes, as he had undertaken to do, led
out a hundred of the chief citizens of Sidon to a Council of the
States of Phoenicia, or so he said.
Howbeit, presently they found themselves in the camp of Ochus who
butchered them to the last man, all save Tenes himself, who returned
to Sidon with a tale of an ambush from which he had escaped.
Then it was I saw that the end drew near, and in a ship, which not
Tenes, but the captains of the Sidonians sent to Nectanebes at Memphis
to pray for more aid, I caused a faithful Jew to sail, one sworn to
the service of Beltis, who carried with him hidden in the hollow sole
of his sandal a letter addressed to Noot and to Philo, praying that
Philo would sail at once and do all those things that had been agreed
upon between us. Also night by night I sent out my spirit, or rather
my thought, to seek the spirit of Noot, as he had taught me to do, and
it seemed to me that answers came from Noot telling me that he read my
thought and would do those things which I desired.
The chief men of the Sidonians held a council in the great hall of the
palace. Hidden behind curtains in a gallery of the hall, Beltis and I
saw and heard all that passed at this council, over which Tenes
presided as King. Bitter was the talk of those lords, for doubts were
abroad. They thought it very strange that Tenes alone should have
escaped from that ambush. Yet like the liar that he was, he cozened
them with false tales, showing them also that the gods of the
Sidonians had preserved his life, that he in his turn might preserve
theirs. Yes, he said this and other things, he the knave and traitor,
who already plotted to destroy them all.
At this council the Sidonians took a desperate road. Day by day many
were escaping from the city by sea and otherwise. Already nigh a third
of the people had gone, and among them some thousands of the best
soldiers, so that the captains saw that soon the great city would be
left with few to defend her. Therefore they came to this resolve--to
burn all their ships so that no more could flee upon them, and to set
watches at the gates and round the walls with orders to slay any who
might attempt flight by land.
Fearing for his life, Tenes consented to these deeds, swearing that he
desired but one thing, to conquer or to die with the citizens of
Sidon.
So it came about that soon the darkness was made as light as day by
the flames which sprang from over a hundred vessels of war besides a
multitude of smaller ships, while the Sidonians, watching them burn
from the roofs of their houses, beat their breasts and moaned. For now
they knew they were cut off and must conquer or perish.
The ships of Ochus watched the port of Sidon, though somewhat
carelessly because it was known to him that its harbours were empty,
and the vast army of Ochus rolled down in countless hosts upon its
walls.
Hour by hour spies came in with terrible reports, causing the hearts
of the Sidonians to melt with fear. For now they understood that all
hope of victory was gone and that they were doomed, though as yet they
did not know that it was their king who had betrayed them.
Another council was held, at which Beltis and I watched as before, and
there it was agreed that the city should throw itself upon the mercy
of Ochus. Tenes affected to protest and at last to allow himself to be
overruled, as I, to whom he came day by day for guidance, put it into
his black heart to do. Heralds were sent to the camp of Ochus,
offering to surrender upon honourable terms, and while they were
absent bloody sacrifices of children and others were made to Dagon and
his company in the Holy Place before the temple, till its pavements
ran red with blood. For thus these cruel folk hoped to propitiate
Heaven and to win mercy from Ochus.
The heralds returned bearing the word of Ochus. He said that if five
hundred of the chief citizens came out unarmed and made submission to
him, he would grant their prayer and spare Sidon; but if they did not,
that he would pull it stone from stone and slaughter all who lived
within its walls. Also one of the Persian ambassadors who accompanied
them brought a secret letter for Tenes. This letter Tenes, who by now
did nothing without my counsel, read to me.
It was brief. This was its substance:
If he would put Sidon into his hands, Ochus swore to Tenes by his most
solemn Persian oaths advancement greater than he had ever dreamed; and
to Mentor the Rhodian and the general of the Grecian and Egyptian
Mercenaries, he swore a vast sum in gold and one of the first commands
in the Persian army. If Tenes would not do this, then Ochus proposed
to make peace with Sidon for a while but afterward to destroy it. To
Tenes himself, however, he promised death at the hands of the
Sidonians themselves, to whom all his treachery should be revealed.
Lastly an answer was demanded without delay.
"What shall I say to Ochus, Lady?" asked Tenes of me.
"I know not," I answered. "Honour would seem to demand that you should
lay down your life and save Sidon and her citizens, if only for a
while. Yet, O King, what is honour? How will honour help you when you
have been torn to pieces by the maddened mob upon yonder Holy Place,
and your spirit has gone to Baal, or wherever the spirits of those
sacrificed to Moloch may go. Will this empty honour give you that
great advancement of which the Persian speaks, which doubtless will
carry with it the rule of Phoenicia and of Egypt, and perchance also
that of the East? For Ochus being mortal, Tenes, once you have brought
him to his death, as I can show you how to do, who is fitter than
yourself to fill his throne? Lastly, will death with honour bring me
whom you desire to your side, King Tenes? I have spoken, now judge,"
and lifting my veil, I sat and smiled at him.
"It is not safe," he said. "All hangs on Mentor and the Greeks. Unless
they join in the plot the Sidonians will fight to the last with their
aid, and when they discover my traffic with Ochus they will slay me.
And if I fly to Ochus and the Sidonians fight, then mayhap he will
slay me as one who has helped him nothing. But if Mentor joins us,
then we can open the gates to the Persians and ourselves go out safe
to reap our reward."
"There speaks a great man," I said, "one who is fore-sighted, one not
tied by petty scruples; there speaks such a one as I would take to be
my lord. Aye, there speaks a man fit to rule the world, to whom the
great advancement the Persian promises is but the first rung in the
ladder of glorious triumph--that ladder which reaches to the very
stars. Already these Sidonians hate you, Tenes. I saw them mutter when
you passed among them yesterday; aye, and one laid his hand upon his
dagger, but another checked him, having a look in his eyes that seemed
to say--'Not yet.' If once they learn the truth, Tenes, perchance soon
you also will lie on the altar of sacrifice and be cast living into
the fiery jaws of Dagon, where your son went before you, Tenes. Why do
you not send for Mentor and search his mind?"
So Mentor was sent for, and meanwhile I gave Tenes my hand to kiss.
Yes, I even suffered this that I might fix him the more firmly on my
hook.
Mentor came. He was a burly Greek, a great soldier with a keen brain
behind his laughing eyes; one who loved gold and wine and women, and
for these and high place and generalship was ready to sell his sword
to whoever bid the most.
Tenes set out the matter to him very craftily and showed him the
writing of Ochus. He listened, then asked,
"And what does this veiled Daughter of Isis think? I remember hearing
in Egypt where she was held the first of Oracles and named Child of
Wisdom, that her prophecies never fail to fulfil themselves."
"The Daughter of Isis thinks that among the Persians Mentor will grow
tall, but that here among the Sidonians he will be felled like a
forest tree and go to feed a mighty fire, such a fire as consumed the
fleets of Sidon awhile ago."
Thus I answered, and when Mentor heard my words, he laughed and said
that he was of the same mind, which without doubt was true, for
afterward I learned that he had already been in treaty with Ochus.
So he and Tenes struck hands upon their bargain, the most infamous
perhaps that was ever made by men, since it gave to slaughter forty
thousand or more who trusted to them.
Thus was signed the doom of an accursed people, that doom which I was
destined to bring upon their heads, and thus was Tenes sent down the
road to hell. Only Mentor prospered greatly for a while in the service
of the Persians, and what was the end of him I do not know. After all,
he was but one of many who flit from master to master as advantage
leads them. Doubtless long ago the world has forgotten him, his
Grecian cunning, his generalship, and his treachery.
The five hundred went out to the Persian camp to plead with Ochus,
bearing palm branches in their hands; yea, they went with light
hearts, for Tenes had told them that certainly their prayer would be
granted and that he knew this from the lips of Ochus himself. Led by
the priesthoods of the various gods--oh! how it rejoiced me to see
those vile and cruel priests in that company!--they went, but not one
of them returned again, for Ochus received them with mockeries and
reviling, and to make sport for himself and his soldiers, told them to
run back to Sidon. Then he loosed his horsemen on them and slew them
with swords and javelins and set their heads on stakes around the
walls.
When the Sidonians knew and saw, they went mad with rage and terror.
They gathered themselves by thousands in the Holy Place, and had it
not been for Mentor and his Greeks, would have stormed the palace, for
now they were sure that Tenes had betrayed them. Indeed Beltis had
made the truth of this treachery known through the Hebrews who served
her. Also they clamoured that I, Ayesha, should be led forth and
sacrificed, saying that it was the presence of a priestess of Isis in
the city which had caused their gods to desert them. For a little
while I was afraid, who remembered what had chanced upon the ship
/Hapi/ when Tenes would have suffered me to be thrown to the deep to
satisfy the superstition of the sailors. Therefore thinking it best to
be bold, I sent for Tenes and said to him,
"If by evil chance I should be slain, O King, then know that I have it
from the goddess whom I serve that you with whose lot mine is
intertwined will die within an hour. I, Tenes, am the bright star of
your fortunes, and if I set, farewell to them and you."
"I know it," he answered, "as I know that without you I can never rise
to be king of the world. Therefore I will defend you to the last;
also, beauteous one, I desire you for my wife. Yet," he added, "some
might think that this star of your wisdom has hitherto led my feet
into dark and evil places," and he looked at me doubtfully.
"Fear nothing," I answered. "'Tis ever darkest before the dawn and out
of evil arises good. Great glory awaits you, Tenes, or rather great
glory awaits both of us. History will embalm your name, Tenes." But to
myself I thought that it was the Persians who would embalm his body,
unless indeed they cast it to the dogs!
Now every evening after sundown it was my custom to walk upon the flat
roof of the palace and look out over the ocean which, also for reasons
of my own, rising early, I did before the dawn. That night while I
walked I put up my prayers to Heaven, for though I played so bold a
game, its odds seemed to be gathering against me. Doubtless, as it
deserved, this hateful Sidon would fall, but when its walls were
crashing down, with what should I protect my head? I did not know. Yet
it is true that never did I lose faith. Always I knew that I was the
instrument of that Strength which directs the fate of men and nations,
that what I did was because I was driven and commanded so to do for
reasons that were dark to me; moreover, that I was not an instrument
to be broken and thrown aside. Nay, however strait the path and
however great the perils that beset it, I was sure that I should walk
it with safety, because it was fated that I should do so, though
whither it would lead me I could not tell in those days when I was but
as other women are. Still I put up my prayer to Heaven and scanned the
horizon with my eyes.
Lo! far away beyond the lights of the watching triremes of Ochus, so
far that it seemed almost set upon the surface of the sea, burned a
faint green fire. For the fourth part of an hour it burned, and went
out. Then I knew that my words had reached Egypt, whether in the
writing or by the swift path of the spirit, and that Noot or Philo had
come to save me.
Before the dawn once more I climbed to the roof of the palace, and
behold! far away again the green fire burned upon the bosom of the
deep, telling me that out yonder the great trireme waited for my
coming. Aye, but how was I to come?
Tenes the vile and Mentor the venal played their parts well. They
opened the gates of the outmost wall which the Greeks held, and let in
the Persians whom these Greeks greeted as brothers, having at times
served under them in the past. The Sidonians saw and knew that the
dice had fallen against them; knew too that they were loaded dice.
They gathered in the Holy Place and raved for the blood of Tenes who
cowered behind a curtain and hearkened to them. Beltis and I, playing
our parts, came to comfort him.
"Be brave!" I said gently. "The road to the kingship of the world is
steep and difficult. Yet when the peak is gained, how glorious, O
Conqueror, will be the prospect spread out before your eyes."
"It is steep and difficult," he muttered, wiping his brow with the
fringe of his broidered robe.
Had he been seen the look which Beltis cast upon him, standing behind
him with folded arms and humble air, perchance he would have thought
it steeper still.
"Let us talk," I said, "for the end draws near. What is your plan? How
will you and we, your queens, escape from this city?"
"All is prepared," he answered. "At the King's wharf, to which a
covered way runs from the palace, in the house where the royal boats
are moored, is my own barge that, being thus secured, escaped burning
with the ships. In this barge, which is manned with Greeks to whom a
great reward is promised and who wait in the boathouse day and night,
we will row from the harbour for a hidden land and be escorted thence
to the encampment of the Great King. Yet perchance it may be wiser
that I should be with Mentor to welcome Ochus when he enters to take
peaceful possession of the city. If so, Daughter of Isis, you will do
well to leave it by yourself, or with the lady Beltis if she wishes to
accompany you, and to meet me in the camp of Ochus."
"Perhaps that would be better," I answered, "since it might not be
thought seemly that the great King Tenes should slip away to his ally
by night. Nay, let him rather march out as a monarch should. Only then
we must have authority to act as occasion may direct."
"Aye, Lady, take this ring," and slipping the royal signet from his
finger he gave it to me. "It will be obeyed by all who see it;
moreover, I will issue certain orders. So long as we meet again at
last, we whose fates are intertwined, it matters not by what separate
roads we travel."
"It matters not at all, my lord Tenes," I answered as swiftly as I hid
away the signet.
It was just then, at the hour of sunset, that Mentor entered the
chamber. No longer was he gay and light-hearted; indeed his brows were
bent and his eyes full of trouble.
"By Zeus!" he said, "a dreadful thing has happened. In their despair
these Sidonians of yours, King Tenes, have taken counsel together.
They have determined that rather than fall into the hands of Ochus,
they will burn the city and with it themselves and their wives and
children. Yes, uttering the curse of all the gods upon you, thus they
have determined. Look, the fires begin!"
We went to the window-places and gazing from them, saw desperate men
rushing to and fro with lighted torches of cedar wood in their hands,
while other men drove mobs of screaming women and children into the
houses, yes, and into the temples, and shut the doors upon them. Here
and there, too, from the roofs of these houses rose wisps of smoke
that soon were mingled with flame. East and west and north and south,
through the great city of Sidon arose that smoke and flame. Everywhere
also mobs of the people whose courage failed them and who did not
desire to die thus were rushing toward the gates and into the camp of
the Greeks. In this fashion, I believe, that from ten to twenty
thousand of the inhabitants of Sidon escaped, though afterwards Ochus
the cruel slew many of them and enslaved the rest.
I looked, I saw, and my heart melted within me. Hateful as were these
insolent, bloodstained folk, I grieved that I should have had any hand
in bringing their reward upon them. After all, they were brave and
would have fought to the end, who now made expiation by a great self-
sacrifice, which was also brave. Oh! if I could I would have lifted
that doom from off them. Then I remembered that it was not I who did
these things, but Fate which made of me its instrument; remembered
also that only thus could I escape the foul hands of Tenes.
I turned to look upon that traitor. He trembled, and trembling tried
to seem brave; he laughed, and in the midst of his laughter burst into
tears.
"Behold the fate of those who would have slain their king! Truly the
gods are just," he said. "Now let us fly to the great Ochus and
receive from him his royal welcome and reward. Truly the gods are
just!"
He turned about seeking for Mentor, but Mentor had gone. There
remained in that chamber only Beltis the Queen, he, and I, Ayesha.
Beltis glided to the door and made it fast. Then she came to Tenes and
before he guessed her purpose, snatched the gold-hilted sword from his
belt. She stood before him with fierce white face and blazing eyes.
"Truly the gods are just," she repeated in a low and terrible voice.
"Fool, do you not know what welcome Ochus will give you yonder and
what rewards? Hearken! That false Greek, Mentor, told me of these but
now, for pitying my lot, he offered me his love and to take me to
safety. After I had refused him, he went his way while you stared from
the window-place."
"What words are these, Woman?" gasped Tenes. "Ochus is my ally; Ochus
will greet me well who have served him well. Let us be going."
"Ochus will greet you thus, O Tenes; I have it from the mouth of
Mentor who has it from Ochus himself. Slowly he will cause you, a
king, to be beaten to death with rods, which is the fate the Persians
give to slaves and traitors. Then he will stuff your body with spices
and tie it to the masthead of his ship, that when presently he sails
for Egypt it may be a warning to Nectanebes the Pharaoh whom also you
have betrayed."
"It is a lie, it is a lie!" shouted Tenes. "Daughter of Isis, tell
this mad woman that it is a lie."
I stood still, answering nothing, and Beltis went on,
"Tenes, Fate is upon you. Will you meet it less bravely than the
meanest of the thousands of this people whom you have given to doom?
Take my last counsel and leap from yonder window, that you who have
lived a coward and a traitor may at last die a man."
He gnashed his teeth, he stared about him. He even went to the window-
place and looked out as though he would brave the deed.
"I dare not," he muttered, "I dare not. The gods are just; they will
save me who sacrificed my son to them."
Then he knelt down in the window-place and began to pray to Moloch
whose brazen image showed redly in the gathering gloom.
"Take your sword, Tenes, if you dare not leap, and make an end," said
the cold voice of the fierce-faced Hebrew lady who stood behind him,
whilst I, Ayesha, watched all this play as a spirit might that is afar
from the affairs of earth, wondering how it would end.
But Tenes only answered,
"Nay, sharp steel is worse than steep air. I would live, not die. The
gods are just, the gods are just!"
Then he went on praying to Moloch.
Queen Beltis grasped the handle of the short sword with both her hands
and with all her strength drove it down between the broad shoulders of
Tenes.
"Aye, dog of a Sidonian," she cried, "the gods are very just, or at
the least my God is just, and here--child-slayer--is the justice!"
Tenes screamed aloud, then struggled to his feet and stood striking at
the air, the short sword still fixed in his back, a dreadful sight to
behold.
"Would you murder me, Jewess?" he babbled, and staggered after her,
still beating at the air with his clenched fist.
"Nay," she answered, ever retreating before him, "I would but give you
your due, or some of it. Go, garner the rest in Gehenna's deep, O
butcher of children and traitor blacker than the world has ever seen.
Die, hound! Die, lurking jackal who would have mumbled the bones of
greatness left by the full-fed Persian lion. Die, slaughterer of the
son that sprang from us, and go meet his spirit in the world below,
telling him that Elisheba his mother, a woman of the royal house of
Israel, the Queen whom you had rejected, sent you thither. Die, while
the city, the great City of the Seas, burns with the fires that your
treachery has lighted and the cries of its tortured citizens ring in
your ears. Pass with them to Gehenna and there strike your account,
having their fire-shrivelled souls for witnesses and Moloch and Baal
and Ashtoreth for judges and for company. Die, dog, die! and while
your brain darkens, remember to the last that it was Elisheba, the
robbed mother, who gave you to drink of the cup of death."
So she reviled, ever flitting before him, while he staggered slowly
after her round the great chamber. At length he could no more and fell
at my feet, grasping my robe,
"Daughter of Isis," he babbled, "whom I desired and would have made my
queen, save me! Is this the great advancement that you swore to me?"
"Aye, mighty Tenes," I answered, "since death is the greatest of all
advancements. In death be king of Phoenicia, of Egypt, and of all the
East, since surely there you will stand above all thrones, powers, and
dominions. In death all things will be yours, O traitor Tenes, who
would have done violence to the daughter of Isis, everything save
Ayesha's self, who here bids you farewell, vile Tenes."
Then, wailing and moaning, he died, and thus robbed Ochus of his
vengeance upon a tool of which he had no further need.
CHAPTER XI
THE ESCAPE FROM SIDON
All was over and done. Within that royal chamber was silence, though
without the flames roared and the cries of the Sidonians went up to
Heaven. I, Ayesha, and Beltis the Queen, faced each other in the gloom
and between us lay the body of Tenes, on whose white, distorted face
flickered the light of the fires that burned without.
"What now, Queen?" I said.
"Death, I think," she answered in a quiet voice, for all her rage
seemed to have left her. "Why cheat his jaws of their richest morsel?"
"I have still work to do, my hour has not yet come, Queen."
"Aye, I forgot. Follow me, Daughter of Isis; Beltis does not forsake
those who have served her. Look your last upon this carrion that hoped
to call you wife, and follow me."
As we passed from that chamber I glanced through the window and saw
that, although darkness now had fallen, the Holy Place beneath was
bright as noon with the flames of the burning temple, and that in them
the vast graven image of Moloch glowed as it had done upon the day of
sacrifice when the child of Beltis was swallowed in its red-hot jaws.
There it sat hideous; grinning as though in unholy triumph over this
greatest of all sacrifices.
Then suddenly a pinnacle from the temple fell upon it, grinding it to
powder. This was the end of Moloch, since, although Sidon, as I have
learned, was rebuilt in the after years, never more was sacrifice made
to that devil within its walls. This at least I, Ayesha, brought to
pass--the end of the worship of Moloch at Sidon.
We passed through my sleeping-chamber, and as we went I seized the
cabinet of priceless gems that Tenes from time to time had heaped upon
me, since these were sworn to Isis and no goddess loves to be robbed
of her offerings. At the back of the chamber was a passage leading to
a door by which a lighted lamp had been set in readiness. At this door
stood a man whom I knew for one of the Jewish servants sworn to the
service of Beltis.
"You are late, royal Lady," he exclaimed. "So late that I was about to
flee, for look, the palace burns beneath us," and he pointed to little
wreaths of smoke that forced themselves up between the boards of the
flooring of the bedchamber that we had passed.
"Late, but not too late," she answered. "The King detained us and has
gone another way. You have his orders and here is his ring," and she
pointed to the royal signet upon my hand. "Obey it and lead on."
The man held up the lantern and glanced at the ring. Then he bowed and
beckoned to us to follow him.
We went down passages, long passages with many turnings, and at length
came to another door which he opened with a key. Passing it, we found
ourselves in a vaulted place beneath which was water, where floated
the royal barge, the same in which I had been rowed to the shore of
Sidon. Oarsmen sat waiting within this barge, and guarding it were two
Grecian soldiers, who commanded us to halt.
"This boat awaits King Tenes," said one of them, "and none else may
enter it."
"I am the Queen," answered Beltis.
"With whom I hear the King has quarrelled," broke in the Greek with a
sneer. "Queen or no, Lady, you cannot enter that boat without the
King, or an order under his signet."
Then I held up my hand, saying,
"Here is the signet itself. Let us pass."
He stared at it by the light of the lamp, then said something to the
other Greek and very doubtfully they obeyed. It was certain that these
guards standing in that vaulted place did not know what was passing in
the city. Moreover, I think it had come into their minds to rob us, or
worse. At the least this is sure, that unless we could have killed
those two Greeks, without the signet never should have we have won to
the boat.
We went on twelve paces or so and reached the barge, which was manned
with sailors who wore the uniform of the King's bodyguard, men who
knew the Queen and saluted her by raising their oars. Beltis motioned
first to me and afterward to the Jew who had been our guide from the
palace, to enter the barge, then suddenly she said to the steersman
who commanded the sailors,
"Go now whither this lady shall direct you, and know that if harm
comes to her your lives shall pay the price of it, for she is no
woman, but a goddess whom Death obeys."
Now I stared at her and asked,
"Do you not come also, Queen Beltis?"
"Nay," she whispered. "I choose another road to safety. Fear not for
me, I will tell you all when we meet again. For a while farewell,
Child of Wisdom and my friend. May the gods with whom you commune be
your shield upon earth and receive you when you leave the earth, you
who strove to save a certain one and cast your mantle over Beltis when
a sword that now is set in another's heart was at her own. Give way,
sailors," she cried, "and if you would look once more upon the sun,
obey."
Then with her own hands she thrust at the stern of the boat, causing
it to move into the channel. Next moment Beltis had shrunk back into
the darkness and was gone.
Now I would have returned to seek for her, but the Jew at my side
called out,
"Give way! Give way and question not the word of the Queen who
doubtless has work elsewhere. Be swift; doom is behind you."
For a moment they hesitated, then bent them to their oars while I
wondered what might be the meaning of the part that Beltis played. Did
she perchance plan some trap for me? I did not know, but this I knew,
that behind was the burning city, whereas in front lay the open sea.
Whatever its perils I would face the sea, trusting to destiny to be my
guide. As for Beltis, doubtless she took some other road to freedom.
Mayhap after all she would shelter with Mentor, or Ochus had promised
her deliverance in payment for the blood of Tenes.
So I sat silent, and presently the channel took a turn; the swinging
water-gates that hid its mouth were thrust open with an oar by a man
who stood at the barge's prow, and we passed into the southern
harbour.
Yes, out of the darkness we passed into a blaze of light, and out of
the silence into a hideous tumult of sound. For all around us the city
burned furiously and from it rose one horrible wail of woe.
The rowers saw and understood who until now had known nothing in the
silence of the secret harbour cave. They hung upon their oars. Then
they brought round the barge's prow seeing to return into the cave,
but could not because those doors had swung to behind them and, having
locked themselves by some device, could only be opened from within.
Nor indeed could I tell where these were since they seemed to form
part of the harbour wall.
The helmsman looked back and from side to side at the hell of fire
which raged behind and around him. He looked at the jutting pier upon
our right and noted that already its timbers were ablaze. Then he
looked in front and cried,
"Now I see why the Queen left us! Well, there is but one chance.
Onward to the open sea."
"Aye," I echoed, "onward to the open sea. Here you must die; there I
will lead you to safety. I swear it by the Queen of Heaven."
"'Tis well to talk," said one, "but how shall we gain the sea? Look,
the Persians are barring the harbour mouth and slaying those who
strive to escape."
It was true. Many of the miserable inhabitants of Sidon had found
boats of this sort or of that, or even were swimming upon logs or
barrels. For these the Persians or those in their pay waited at the
mouth of the harbour and with mocking words and laughter butchered
them as they came. Yes, from their smaller ships they slew them with
spears and arrows or by throwing stones that drove out the bottoms of
the boats.
"Keep in the shadow of the jetty," I said, "where the wind-driven
smoke hangs thick and near which the triremes dare not come because of
the rocks whereon it is built, and row, row fast."
They heard and obeyed. On we went beneath an arching canopy of smoke
laced with bursts of flame from the kindling timbers, till at length
we reached the head of the jetty on which stood a wooden tower where a
light burned at night to be a guide to mariners entering the harbour.
Here we waited a while, clinging to one of the piers, for although the
wind was rising, in this sheltered place the sea remained calm.
Rowing across the head of the jetty was a Persian trireme, and until
she had gone by we dared not attempt the sea. At length she passed,
leisurely, and our chance came. At a muttered word the oarsmen gave
way with all their strength and we shot clear of the mole into the
open deep. As we did so, I looked back and perceived behind and above
me a sight that after more than two thousand years still haunts me in
my sleep.
Upon the end of this timber-crested mole, as I have said, there was a
wooden tower from which in times of peace a beacon burned. Now this
tower was blazing like the pierway behind it and no beacon shone
there. Only where it should be stood a woman on whose face the strong
light beat, since the wind swept away the smoke and revealed her like
a statue on a column that rises above mist. I looked at this shape and
this face and saw that they were those of Beltis the Queen of Sidon.
How she had come there, I do not know, but I think that she had run
along the burning mole before it was too late, being well acquainted
with the path, and had climbed the stairway of the tower, that from
its crest she might look her last upon Sidon and on life.
There at least she stood, royal-looking, silent, with her arms crossed
upon her breast, while the purple cloak that marked her rank floated
behind her like a banner on the breeze.
She saw the barge that bore us shoot out of the gloom and reek into
the deep sea. I know that she saw because she stretched out her arm as
though to bless us. Then she turned and lifted her hands towards the
burning city as though to curse it. Lastly, once more she folded her
arms upon her breast and stood motionless, her white face raised to
the heavens.
Thus she remained while one might count an hundred, till suddenly the
timbers of the tower, gnawed through by the flames, fell in and she
vanished in a roaring gulf of fire.
Such was the end of that great and ill-fated woman, the royal Beltis,
Queen of Sidon, whom, mayhap in expiation of sin done in another star,
the gods gave to the arms of perchance the vilest man that ever lived
upon the earth. Greatly she died, a sacrifice, as her son had been a
sacrifice, but not before she had wrought a fitting vengeance upon the
murderer of her child and the betrayer of his people. Moloch, god of
fire, took her as he took them all, but now she was beyond the reach
of Moloch, Moloch who was but molten metal, an offering to himself.
In the great flame of the fallen tower the trireme that bore the
banner of Ochus saw our boat escaping out to sea and put about to
pursue it.
"Row on!" I cried, "row into the darkness," and knowing that their
lives hung on the issue, since, as we had already seen, the Persians
spared none whom they overtook in the boats but drove the triremes
over them, shooting any who swam with arrows, those sailors rowed
sturdily. Yet our progress was but slow and that of the three-banked
ship behind us fast; moreover, the fires of burning Sidon lit up the
sea for miles.
Could we reach the darkness before we were overtaken? We came to its
edge with the great trireme not a hundred paces from our stern--so
near indeed that the soldiers on board of her began to shoot at us,
though in the gathering gloom and because of the rolling platform on
which they stood, their shafts went wide. She was right upon us; her
hull had vanished in the shadows but the light from the fires still
gleamed upon her gilded masthead, while her great oars beat the sea
with a sound like thunder.
"Put about," I cried, "or she will sink us."
Very skilfully the steersman obeyed so that we doubled like a hunted
hare and the Persian shot past us. Then once more we turned and rowed
on into the night. When it wrapped us round, the sailors, exhausted,
rested on their oars. Again we heard the thunder of the great slave-
manned sweeps, and again the brazen prow of the tall ship, cruel,
enormous, hung almost over us. Only by an ell or two did the broad
blades of the oars miss us, the eddies that they made causing our
little craft to rock dangerously. But this time that huge sea-hound
was blinded by the darkness and not seeing us, nor hearing anything,
for we sat silent as the grave, she rushed upon her way, and for a
time we saw her no more.
All was quiet upon the breast of ocean. Far off burned Sidon like a
gigantic beacon fire, but there came to us no whisper of her agony.
Yes, all was quiet, save for the sighing of the night wind that, to my
strange fancy, seemed like to such a sound as might be made by the
rush of ten thousand spirits passing from the cruel earth upward to
the peace above. Slowly the wearied oarsmen drove the boat still
farther out to sea; then their captain said,
"Whither away, Lady? It is in my mind to change our course and run for
the coast northward, where perchance there are no Persians."
"Nay," I answered, "we stay where we are, I search for a ship."
"Mayhap we shall find one," he said with a hoarse laugh, "a ship of
the fleet of Ochus."
They began to dispute as to what course they should take.
"Obey me," I said, "or obey me not, as you will. Only then I, who have
the counsel of the gods, tell you that save I only, by sunrise
to-morrow everyone of you will be dead."
They whispered together, for my words frightened them. At length the
captain spoke, saying,
"The great Queen Beltis who is gone told us that this woman is a
goddess and that what she commanded, that we must do. Let us remember
the words of the great Queen Beltis who is dead and doubtless watches
us from the sky."
So this danger passed also, and all that night we floated, keeping the
boat's stern to burning Sidon while the most of the oarsmen slept in
their places. So weary were they that not even the horror behind them
and the loss of their kinsfolk, or even their own fears, could hold
them back from sleep.
But I, Ayesha, did not sleep; nay, I watched and thought. If Philo had
fled away, or if his ship had been sunk, what then? Then all was
finished. Nay, not so, since it could not be that I should die with
but half my task accomplished. I was friendless among strange men, yet
in my breast there dwelt the greatest of friends, that spirit whose
name is Fate. I threw out my soul to my master Noot the Seer, and lo!
it seemed to me that his soul answered, saying,
"Fear nothing, Daughter of Isis, for the wings of Isis shadow thee."
It drew near to the dawn; I knew it by the stars which I was wont to
watch and by the smell of the air. I rose in my seat and stared into
the darkness. Behold! not four furlongs from our prow suddenly there
sprang into life a fire of green flame.
"Awake," I cried, "and row on swiftly, for if you would you live you
must reach the ship upon which yonder fire burns before the breaking
of dawn."
They obeyed, wondering, who knew not what this fire might mean. We
sped forward, and as the first light gleamed saw almost above us the
bulk of the great trireme named /Hapi/.
"Hail her!" I cried, and the captain did so. One appeared by her
bulwark rail, holding a lantern. Its light shone upon his face and I
saw that it was that of Philo the Greek.
"Ye are saved," I said quietly, "for yonder is the vessel that awaits
me."
"Of a truth this is a goddess!" muttered the captain of the barge.
Now Philo saw us in the growing light, and cried to us to come
swiftly, pointing to something which he could discover but we could
not. We were alongside, eager hands dragged us from the boat. We were
aboard, I still carrying the casket of jewels though at the time I did
not know I held it fast. Philo bowed the knee to me as to one divine,
at which our oarsmen stared. Then he shouted a command and again
pointed behind us.
Lo! there, scarce two bowshots away, was the great Persian ship which
we had escaped in the gloom of the night.
Our oars struck the water, we leapt forward like an unleashed hound,
and after us came the trireme like a lion springing on the hound.
Trireme have I called her? Nay, as we saw now, she was a quinquereme,
one of the new five-banked ships built by Ochus, a mighty monster. For
a little while she hesitated as though wondering whether to attack or
let us be. Then as the light strengthened the eyes of her watchmen
caught sight of our abandoned boat and by its gilding and emblems knew
it for the royal barge of Tenes.
A great shout arose, a shout of
"The King escapes. The King and Queen Beltis escape. After them!"
Then the quinquereme leapt forward in pursuit. Because of her bulk she
was slow in gathering speed and we who had the start of her drew away
quickly, especially after a shift of wind which seemed to miss the
/Holy Fire/, for so Philo, who knew her, said the Persian was named,
filled our great sail.
Seeing this and hoping that our danger was past, I went to that same
captain which had been mine when as the captive of Tenes I sailed upon
this ship, which seemed to be just as I had left it. This I did
without speech to Philo, save a word to commend to his care the Jew
and those others who had been my companions upon the barge.
For now that all was over, it seemed to me as though I must rest or
die; moreover, I was foul with travel and needed food. This indeed I
found ready upon a table which caused me to wonder, though dully,
which I did even more when I saw clean woman's garments such as I was
accustomed to use spread out upon the cabin couch. So I cleansed and
clothed myself and ate a little, drinking some wine, which I did
rarely, then lay down upon the couch and for a space, perhaps, slept
as though I were dead.
I woke, I knew not why who could have slumbered on for hours, yet
feeling as though the most of my weariness had rolled off me. The
place was very dim for the curtained door was shut and at first I
could see nothing. Presently, however, I became aware that I was not
alone in the cabin. For as my eyes grew accustomed to such light as
reached it, I discovered the shape of a man, an old, white-bearded
man, kneeling at its far end as though in prayer, and wondered whether
I dreamed, for what could such a one be doing here? Soon indeed I was
sure that I dreamed, since this shape was that of the high-priest
Noot, my Master, whom I supposed to be far away in Egypt. Or perchance
Noot was dead and this was his spirit that visited me in my sleep.
Spirit or dream or man, words came from the lips of that vision spoken
in the very voice of Noot; such words as these,
"O Mother Isis, and Thou without a name whom Isis and all the gods
serve and obey, I thank ye that ye have been pleased to bring this
maiden in safety through her appointed tasks, throwing over her the
shield of a strength divine. I thank ye that ye have led her back to
me, her father in the spirit, that defilement has not touched her,
that fire has not burned her, that water has not drowned her, and that
the foeman's spears have not pierced her heart. I pray ye, O Mother
Isis and O Thou without a name in the hollow of whose hand lie the
world and all that live thereon, that as has been the beginning, so
may be the end, and that this chosen woman may return safe to whence
she came, there to accomplish those tasks that she was created to
fulfil."
Thus that voice prayed on, the holy, well-remembered voice, till at
length I brought its supplications to an end, saying,
"Tell me, Noot my father, why do you still fear in this hour of
deliverance?"
He rose, he came to me, and drawing aside a curtain on a little
window-plate, scanned me with kind and gentle eyes. Then he took my
outstretched hand, kissed it, and answered,
"Alas! there is still much to fear, O my daughter, but of that you
shall learn presently. First tell me the story of what has chanced to
you since we parted."
Briefly, omitting much, I told him that tale.
"It is as my spirit showed me," he said when I had finished. "Heaven
has not deceived its servant. Your messenger reached us, Daughter, but
had he died upon the road it would have mattered little, since long
ere he had set foot in Egypt my soul had heard your soul and made all
things ready. Yet last night, when Sidon burned, I confess that my
faith failed me and this soul of mine shook with fear. Indeed an hour
after sunset I thought that your ghost passed me, crying that all was
done."
"Perchance it was the ghost of Beltis that passed. But of these things
we will talk afterward. I see fear in your eyes. Of what are you
afraid?"
"Rise and look through that window-place, Daughter."
I did so and behold! but a little distance away the great quinquereme
named the /Holy Fire/ sped upon our track, so fast that her five banks
of oars lashed the sea to foam.
"Father divine," said a voice without, a voice that I seemed to know,
"I have words to say."
"Enter and speak," answered Noot.
The door was opened and the curtain drawn, admitting a rush of
sunlight. Lo! there before me stood a warrior clad in such armour as
the Greeks wear and, thus attired, the most beautiful and glorious-
looking man that ever my eyes beheld.
It was /Kallikrates, Kallikrates himself/, only now in place of the
priest's robe his great form was clad in bronze; in place of a chaplet
a helm was on his head and in place of the /sistrum/ his hand gripped
a sword hilt. Yes, it was Kallikrates, he whose lips in past days had
met mine in the holy shrine, but as he had been before he had vowed
himself to Isis because of a certain crime. For now again he was a man
and a captain of men, not one who with bent brows and humble mien from
hour to hour mutters prayers to an unseen divinity.
Oh! I will tell truth. When I saw him thus I liked him well. Yes,
though for long he had been nothing to me save a fellow servant of the
goddess, once more I was thrilled with a cup of that same wine which I
had seemed to drink when our lips met far away in Egypt; once again
that fire which I had stamped to ashes beneath my feet sprang to life
and scorched my heart.
Mayhap it was his beauty, as great perhaps as that of any man who ever
lived, or mayhap it was the light of battle that shone in his gray
eyes which thus stirred the woman in me. At least I who had sickened
at the sight of Tenes and all other men, I who had given myself to
higher things and, rejecting the flesh, followed the spirit only, was
stirred like any common maid who finds her lover at the moonrise.
Moreover, Noot, who could read hearts and above all my heart, noted it
for I saw him smile and heard him sigh.
Perchance Kallikrates also noted something, for the colour came to his
brows--I saw it redden beneath the plumed helm of bronze, and he
dropped those bold and beautiful eyes. More, he sank upon his knee,
saluting me with the secret sign and saying,
"Pardon, Child of Wisdom, High-priestess of the Queen of Heaven, that
once again, if only for a little while, I have put on the harness
which I used to wear. It is done to save you, Child of Wisdom. It is
done by command."
"Aye," said Noot, "it is the command of Her we serve that this priest
should lift sword on behalf of Her and us, her slaves."
I bowed my head, but answered--naught.
CHAPTER XII
THE SEA BATTLE
The great Persian ship was on us. Strive as we would, we could not
escape her. She raced upon our beam not a spear's cast away. I stood
upon the high poop of the /Hapi/ and saw it all, for the old Arab
blood was on fire in me, as it had been when I charged in the battle
where my father fell, and I would play no woman's part. Moreover, my
spirit told me that I had not escaped from the hands of Tenes and out
of the burning hell of Sidon, to die there upon the sea.
Standing thus upon the poop by the side of Philo the cunning captain,
I noted this strange thing, that no arrow was shot and no spear thrown
from the Persian's decks. She raced alongside us, that was all. I
looked at Philo, a question in my eyes, and he answered the question
briefly between his set lips.
"They think the King and Queen are aboard and would take us living.
Hark! They shout to us to surrender."
Again I looked at him, wondering what he would do.
He issued an order and presently our speed slackened so that we fell a
little behind the Persian. He issued another order and we leapt
forward again under a changed helm. Now I saw that he was minded to
ram the /Holy Fire/. The Persian saw it also and sheered off. We ran
alongside of her, shipping our oars as we came on that side which was
nearest to her. But the Persian had no time to ship hers. Our sharp
prow caught her fivefold line of sweeps, smashing the most of them as
though they were but twigs, and casting the rowers in a broken,
tumbled heap within her deep hold.
"That was worthy of Philo," I said, but he, ever a humble man, as are
all masters of their trade, shook his head and answered,
"Nay, Lady, I missed my mark and now we must pay for it. Ah! I thought
so."
As he spoke, from sundry places on the /Holy Fire/ grapnels flew out
which caught in the rails, ropes and rowing benches of the /Hapi/,
binding the two ships together.
"They are about to board us," said Philo. "Now, Lady, pray to Mother
Isis to give us aid."
Then he blew two blasts upon his whistle. Instantly rose up upon our
deck a band of men, nigh a hundred of them, perhaps, clad in armour
and captained by the Greek, Kallikrates. Also behind these I saw the
crew of the royal barge, armed with such weapons as they could find,
and the sailors of the /Hapi/.
The Persians thrust out boards or ladders from one ship to the other,
across which their boarders, most of them Greeks, came in swarms. The
fighting began and it was very fierce. Our men cut down many of the
foe and drowned others by casting off the boards and ladders, so that
those on them fell into the sea. Still a great number of them won on
board of us, and oh! fierce was that fray. Always in the thickest of
it I saw Kallikrates towering a head above the others, and who now
would have dreamed that he was a priest of Isis? For he smote and
smote and man after man went down before him, while as his sword rose
and fell he shouted out some old Greek battle cry, such as once his
fathers used.
On a space of deck ringed round with dead and dying, he came face to
face with the captain of the boarders, a great and burly man, also, as
I think, a Greek. They fought terribly, whilst others paused to watch
that fray which Homer might have sung. Kallikrates was down and my
heart stood still. Nay, he was up again but his bronze sword had
broken on the foeman's mail.
That foeman had an axe; he swung it up to make an end. Kallikrates,
rushing beneath it, seized him in his arms and they wrestled there
upon the slippery deck. The ship lurched; together they staggered to
the bulwarks. The foeman loosed one arm and drew a dagger; with it he
smote Kallikrates again and again. Kallikrates bent, and with his
freed hand seized the man beneath the knee. By a mighty effort he
lifted him to the bulwark's edge and there they clung awhile. Then
Kallikrates with that same freed hand smote the other on the brow.
Thrice he smote and his blows were as those of a hammer falling on an
anvil.
The grip of the captain of the boarders loosened and his head hung
back. Once more Kallikrates smote and behold! his foe rolled down and
was crushed to powder between the swelling sides of the two great
ships as they ground one against the other, while the servants of Isis
cheered and the sullen Persian hordes gave back.
I caught sight of Philo thrusting his way along the bulwarks. He held
an axe in his hand but he was not fighting. Nay, he avoided those who
fought. Once indeed he stood still and gave an order, noting, as I had
done, that of a sudden the wind had begun to blow. Certain sailors who
heard this order ran to the mast and I saw the great sail rising
slowly.
Meanwhile Philo slipped along those bulwarks, taking cover beneath
them like a jackal beneath a wall. But whenever he came to one of the
grapnels he stopped and smote it with his axe, severing the rope that
held it. Three of them did he sever thus, so that the prows of the
vessels swung apart.
Now the great sail was up and filled. The /Hapi/ forged ahead,
dragging round the stern of the /Holy Fire/ by those grapnels that
remained. The Persians understood and grew frightened. Those who were
still alive upon our decks rushed to the planks and ladders, but few
gained them, for Kallikrates and the men of Isis were on their heels.
They were cut down; they fell from the sliding planks and ladders, or
they leapt into the sea and for the most part drowned there. Very soon
not one of them was left upon our deck.
The grapnels were torn away, or the ropes broke. We were free. Yet the
Persian was not beaten, for she was full of men of whom those who had
been killed were but a tithe.
She, too, hoisted her sail and thrust out fresh sweeps to continue the
pursuit. Her captain, standing on her prow, roared out,
"Dogs of Egyptians, I'll hang you yet."
Philo heard and took up his bow. Now we were sweeping across the bow
of the /Holy Fire/; mayhap it was a hundred paces away. Philo aimed
and shot. So truly did he shoot that his arrow struck the Persian
captain beneath his helm and down he went.
His fall seemed to bewilder the crew of the /Holy Fire/. They hung
upon their oars shouting at each other, as though they knew not what
to do. Then their sail began to rise and I saw that they were putting
about.
Philo at my side laughed, a hard little laugh.
"Mother Isis is good to us," he said. "See, the hunter has become the
hunted!"
Then he gave orders and we came round so that our great sail taken
aback flapped against the mast.
"Down with the sail and row," he shouted, "row as never ye rowed
before!"
Those at the sweeps obeyed. Oh! it was splendid to see them bending
their broad backs and tugging at the oars till these also bent like
bows in the water. Here was no slave work, for they were servants of
Isis and free men, every one of them. Philo rushed to the steering
gear and with the aid of another man took charge of it himself. We
leapt forward like a panther on its prey. The /Holy Fire/ saw and
strove to escape. Too late, too late! For presently the sharp prow of
the /Hapi/ crashed into her side with such a shock that all who stood
upon the deck were thrown down, I among them. I struggled to my feet
again and heard Philo screaming,
"Back water! Back! lest she take us with her."
We backed. Slowly the prow appeared again from where it was buried
three paces deep in the foeman's flank.
The /Holy Fire/ reeled over; the water rushed in through the gap.
Crippled and helpless she wallowed; aye, she began to sink. From her
swarming decks went up a yell of terror and dismay. Still the water
rushed in with an ever-gathering flood and still she sank and sank.
Men threw up their arms, praying for mercy; men sprang into the sea.
Then suddenly the /Holy Fire/ reared her glittering prow into the air
and stern foremost vanished into the deep. It was finished!
The Persians swam about us, or clung to wreckage, praying to be taken
aboard. But we rowed on coming to the wind again. I know not how it is
in the world to-day, but then in time of war there was little mercy.
Egypt alone was merciful because age had mellowed her and because of
her gentle worship of her gentle gods. But now Egypt was fighting for
her life against the Persian. So we rowed on, and those barbarians
were abandoned to drown and in the world below seek the warmth of the
Fire they worshipped.
Philo left the helm and came to where I stood. I noted that he was
white and shaken and called to one to bring him wine. He drank of it
thankfully, not forgetting first to pour a libation at my feet, or
rather at those of the goddess to whom I was so near.
"Bravely done!" I said. "You understand your trade, Philo."
"Not so ill, Lady, though it might have been better. Had I been at the
helm we should have rammed that swarming hulk before the boarding and
saved some lives. Well, Set has her now and Ochus lacks his finest
ship."
"It might have been far otherwise," I said.
"Aye, Lady. Had I commanded the /Holy Fire/ it would have been
otherwise, for she had two oars and three men to our one, but her
captain was wanting in sea-craft, and when my arrow found him, there
was none to take his place. They should have swept us with their
boarders, but that all Greek captain called Kallikrates, who they tell
me was once a priest, handled his soldiers well. He is a gallant man
and I grieve that we are like to lose him."
"Why?" I asked.
"Oh! because in his fight with a fellow whom he flung over the
bulwarks, he took a knife-thrust in the vitals, which they think will
be mortal. See, they are bearing him to my cabin," and he pointed to
Kallikrates being carried forward by four men--a sight that stirred my
heart.
Then Philo was summoned away, for it seemed that when the /Hapi/
rammed, she sprang a leak and the carpenters called Philo to consult
with them as to how it might be stopped.
When they had gone I followed after Kallikrates and found him laid in
Philo's cabin. They had taken off his armour and the leech, an
Egyptian, was cleaning a cut in his thigh whence the blood ran down
his ivory skin.
"Is it mortal?" I asked.
"I know not, Lady," answered the leech, "I cannot tell the depth of
the thrust. Pray Isis for him, for he has lost much blood."
Now I who was skilled in medicine and in the treatment of wounds which
I had learned from a great master in my youth among the Arabs, helped
that physician as best I might, staunching the blood flow and
stitching up the cut with silk before we bandaged it.
Moreover, taking from my hand a charmed and ancient amulet that gave
health and had the power, so it was said, to cause the sick or wounded
to recover, I set it on the finger of Kallikrates that it might cure
him. This amulet was a ring of brown stone on which were graven
certain hieroglyphics that meant /Royal Son of the Sun/. He who gave
it to me told me that it had been worn by that greatest of all healers
and magicians, Khaemuas, the eldest son of the mighty Rameses. Once
only did I see this ring again as shall be told. Then of it I lost
sight and knowledge till, after more than two thousand years, I beheld
it on the hand of Holly in the caves of Kor.
As I worked thus the pain of the needle awoke Kallikrates from his
swoon. He opened his eyes, looked up and saw me, then muttered in
Greek so low that only I who was bending over him heard his words.
They were:
"I thank thee, Beloved. I thank thee and the gods who have granted
that like my forefathers I should die no priest, but a soldier and a
man. Yea, I thank thee, /O royal and beautiful Amenartas/."
Then he swooned again and I left him quickly, having learned that it
was of the Egyptian he dreamed, and doubtless that it was for the sake
of this same Egyptian that he had changed his sacred robe for mail,
yes, the Egyptian Amenartas for whom he had mistaken me, Ayesha, in
the wandering of his weakness.
Well, why not? What had I to do with him or any man? Yet of a sudden I
grew weary of the world and almost wished that the /Holy Fire/ had
rammed the /Hapi/ and not the /Hapi/ the /Holy Fire/.
Yonder behind us a thousand men were now at peace beneath the sea.
Being overwrought with all that I had endured and seen, almost I could
have wished that I, too, was at peace beneath the sea, sleeping for
ever, or perchance to wake again nursed in the holy arms of Isis.
In the cabin sat my master, the prophet Noot, staring through the open
doorway at the infinite blue of heaven above, as I knew that he had
done during all that fearsome fight.
He smiled when he saw me and asked,
"Whence come you, Daughter, and why do your eyes shine like stars?"
"I come from the sight of the death of men, my Father, and my eyes
shine with the light of battle."
"With other lights also, I think, Daughter. O Ayesha, beauty is yours,
wisdom is yours, and you are filled with spirit like a cup with wine.
But what of the cup? What of the cup? I fear me that those fair feet
of yours have far to travel before they reach their home."
"What is their home, Father?"
"Do you not know it after these many years of learning? Hearken. I
will tell you. Your home is God, not this god or that god called by a
hundred names, but the God beyond the gods. Doubtless you will love
and you will hate, as you have loved and hated. And doubtless you are
destined to draw up what you love and to come to peace with what you
hate. Yet know that above all mortal loves there is another love in
which they must be both lost and found. God is the end of man, O
Ayesha, God or--death. All sin, all stumble on the path, but only
those who continue on that path or who, having lost it, with tears and
broken hearts seek it again and, like the Sisyphus of fable, thrust
before them their frozen load of fleshly error, till at length it
melts in the light that shines above; only those, I say, attain to the
eternal peace."
So solemnly did he speak, uttering the slow words one by one, and so
deep and holy was the lesson that they hid, that I, Ayesha, grew
afraid.
"What have you seen and what do you know, my Father?" I asked humbly.
"Daughter, I have seen you yonder in Sidon rejoicing in vengeance for
vengeance's sake; aye, glad when the vile hound who would have gripped
you, gasped out his life before your eyes. You did not slay him,
Ayesha, but it was your counsel that gave cunning to the thought that
planned and strength to the arm that dealt the blow."
"It was so fated, O my father, and otherwise----"
"Yes, it was so fated; yet you should not have rejoiced in the hour of
your triumph. Nay, you should have sorrowed as the gods sorrow when
they fulfil the decrees of Destiny. Again I have seen you burning with
the flame of battle, your heart filled with songs of victory when
Philo's skill and the Grecian courage of Kallikrates sent those mad
brutes of Persians to their account. And lastly unless I dream----
What did you but now in Philo's cabin, Daughter?"
"I tended a wounded man, my Father, as I have the skill to do. Also I
gave him an amulet which it is said has virtue to heal the sick."
"Aye, that was right and kind and the just reward of courage. Did he
thank you, Daughter? I thought that in the quiet I heard thanks come
from his lips."
"Nay," I answered sullenly, "his mind wandered and he thanked--another
woman who was not there."
Again Noot smiled a little, and answered,
"Was it so? Then let her name be. Yet remember that from such
wanderings of a mind distraught ofttimes springs the truth, like water
from a shattered rock. Oh! Daughter, Daughter, if this man forgets his
vows, must you do the same? For him there is excuse who is a soldier--
can we doubt it who have looked upon his deeds to-day? He became a
priest for love's sake, and the shed blood which it brought. But for
you there is none--at least none upon the earth," he added hastily. "I
pray you, therefore, let this man be, for if you do not, my gift of
wisdom tells me that you will bring much trouble on your head and his.
Why will you seek after vanity? Is it because in the pride of your
beauty you cannot bear that another should be preferred before you and
that a fruit which it is not lawful for you to pluck, should fall into
some other woman's lap? I say to you, Daughter, that this beauty is
your curse, because to it you demand obedience night and day, although
of it you should think nothing, remembering its end. You are too
proud, you are too puffed up. Look upon the stars and learn to be
humble, lest you should be humbled by that which is stronger."
"I am still a woman, Father, a woman whose mission it is to love and
to bear babes."
"Then learn to love that which is above and let the babes you bear be
those of wisdom and good works. Is it your part to suckle sinners like
any hedge-side troll, you to whom the heavens stretch out their hands?
Is it for you in whose breast springs the tree of life to root it up
and in its place to sow the seed of a woman's common arts, that by
their aid you may snatch her lover from a rival? Because he sins, if
sin he does, should you cease from being holy? Where is your
greatness? Where are your purity and pride? I pray to you, beloved
daughter of my spirit, swear to me by Heaven which we serve, that with
this man you will have no more to do. Twice have you sinned--once in
the sanctuary yonder at Philae when his kiss met yours, and now again
not an hour gone upon this ship, when your heart was torn with jealous
rage because the name of another woman escaped from lips that you
thought were about to shape your own. Twice have you sinned and twice
has the goddess turned her head and shut her eyes. But if for a third
time you should walk into this pit dug of your own hands, then know
that escape will be hard indeed. I tell you"--here his face and his
low voice hardened--"I tell you that from age to age shall you strive
unceasingly to wash the stain of blood from off those hands and that
all your breath shall become a sigh and your every heart-beat shall be
an agony. Swear then, swear!"
I looked at his eyes and saw that they were alight and unearthly, yes,
that some spirit shining from within caused them to glow like
alabaster lamps. I looked at the thin hand which he stretched out
toward me and saw that it trembled in his passion.
I looked and was moved to obey. Yet ere I did so I asked,
"Were /you/ ever young, my Father? Did /you/ ever suffer from this
eternal curse which Nature lays on men and women because she would not
die? Did /you/ ever take the bribe of sweet madness with which she
baits her hook? Or, as once I think you told me in bygone years, were
you always holy and apart?"
He covered his eyes with those thin hands, then answered,
"I was young. I suffered from that curse. Whatever I may have said to
you in the past when you were but a child, I gorged that bait, not
once but many times, and I have paid the price. Because I have paid it
to my ruin, I pray you whom I love not to empty your heart of its
purest virgin gold and fill the void with pain and penitence. Easy is
it to fall, Daughter, but hard, very hard to rise again. Will you not
swear?"
"Aye," I answered, "I swear by Isis and by your spirit, O Purified."
"You swear," he said, whispering, "but will you keep the oath? I
wonder, aye, I wonder greatly, will you keep that oath, O high-hearted
woman whose blood runs with so red and strong a stream?"
Then bending forward he kissed me on the brow, and rising left me.
Kallikrates did not die. Under the care of that cunning leech or of
something above the leech, Death was cheated of him, since it seemed
that the knife-thrust had not reached his vitals, or at least had not
pierced them beyond repair. Still he was sick for a long while, for
his whole body was drained of blood, so that had he been older, or
less vigorous, Osiris would have taken him. Or perchance not in vain
had I set upon his finger that scarab-talisman once charmed by
Khaemuas. I visited him no more, and thus it was not until we were
passing up the Nile and drew near to Memphis that I saw him again.
Then, very pale and wasted, yet to my fancy more pleasing than he had
been, since now his face had grown spiritual and his eyes were those
of one that had looked close into those of Death, he was carried in a
bed on to the deck. There I spoke with him, thanking him in the name
of the goddess for the great deeds that he had done. He smiled and his
white face took a little tinge of red as he answered,
"I fear me, O Mouth-of-Isis, that it was not of the goddess that I
thought in that fray, but rather of the joy of battle which I, a
priest, had never hoped to feel again. Nay, nor was it for the goddess
that I smote as best I could, since in the extremities of war the
gates of heaven, which are then in truth so near, seem very far away,
but rather that after all which you had passed, you, with the rest of
us, might not fall into the hands of the heathen fire-worshippers."
Now I smiled back, for the words, if false, were courteous, and
replied that doubtless also he, who was still young, desired to go on
living.
"Nay," he answered earnestly, "I think that I desire to die rather
than to live, and to pass hence as often my forefathers have done,
sword in hand and helm on head. Life is no boon to a shaven priest,
Lady, one who by his vows is cut off from all its joys."
"What is a man's joy in life?" I asked.
"Look at yourself in a mirror, Lady, and you will learn," he answered,
and there was that in his voice which caused me to wonder whether it
was possible after all that the wrong name came from his lips in the
wanderings of his mind.
For then I did not know that a man may love two women and at the same
time; one with his spirit and the other with his flesh, since through
all things runs this war between the spirit and the flesh. The spirit
of Kallikrates was always mine, having been given to me from the
beginning, but with his flesh it was otherwise, and perchance while he
is in the flesh it will so remain.
Before we reached Memphis a signal was made for us to anchor. Then a
barge, flying the standard of Pharaoh, came off to us from the shore.
On board of it was Nectanebes himself and with him his daughter, the
Princess of Egypt, the lady Amenartas; also certain councillors and
Grecian captains in his service.
The Pharaoh and the others came aboard to learn tidings of what had
chanced at Sidon, and were received by Philo and by Noot. Presently
they demanded to be led to me and I met them on the deck outside my
cabin, noting that the eyes of Nectanebes were troubled and that his
fat cheeks had fallen in.
"So you are returned to us, Oracle-of-Isis," he said in a hesitating
voice, scanning my form, for my face he could not see because it was
veiled.
"I am returned, O Pharaoh," I answered, bowing before his Majesty. "It
has pleased Her whom I serve to deliver me out of the hands of King
Tenes of Sidon, to whom Pharaoh offered me as a gift."
"Aye, I remember. It was at that feast when the water in the cup you
held turned to blood. Well, if all I hear is true, there has been
blood enough out yonder."
"Yes, Pharaoh, the Sidonian sea runs red with it. Tenes, Egypt's ally,
surrendered the city to Ochus the Persian, thinking to find great
advancement, which he won by death, whereon the Sidonians burned
themselves in their houses with their wives and children. So it comes
about that all Phoenicia is in the hands of Ochus who advances upon
Egypt with a mighty host."
"The gods have deserted me!" moaned Nectanebes, waving his arms.
"Aye, Pharaoh," I answered in a cold voice, "for the gods are very
jealous and seldom forgive those who forsake them and betray their
servants into the hands of enemies that hate them."
He understood and answered in a low, babbling voice,
"Be not angry with me, Oracle-of-Isis, for what else could I do? That
Sidonian dog, whom may Set devour eternally, was mad for you. Always I
mistrusted him and I was sure that if I refused you to him, he would
make his peace with Ochus and bite me in the back, as indeed he
threatened at the feast. Also I knew well that Mother Isis would
protect you from all harm at his hands, which it seems that she has
done."
Now when I heard these words rage filled me and I answered,
"Aye, Pharaoh, Mother Isis has done this and more. Have you heard how
your poison worked? Nay? Then I will tell you. Having sacrificed her
only son to Dagon, Tenes would have put away Beltis, his queen, to
give her place to me. Mad with hate, Beltis led him into the arms of
the Persian and afterward when his treachery was accomplished, slew
him with her own hand, for I saw the deed. And now, Pharaoh, Sidon has
fallen and with it all Phoenicia, and soon, Pharaoh, Egypt will follow
Sidon. Aye, I, the Oracle, tell you that because you were pleased to
throw the high-priestess of Isis into the arms of Tenes as though she
were some singing woman of whom you had wearied, these things have
come about. Therefore too soon there will no longer be a Pharaoh in
Egypt and the Persian will take the Land of Nile and defile the altars
of its gods."
He heard. He trembled. He had naught to say. But there was another who
heard also. As I had noted, the Princess Amenartas, when she came on
to the ship, went straight to where Kallikrates lay upon a couch
beneath an awning on the deck, and there talked with him earnestly.
What they said I could not hear for they spoke together beneath their
breath. But their faces I could see, and watching them I grew sure
that the Greek had made no error of a mind distraught when he spoke
this royal lady's name as I tended his wounds. For those faces were
the faces of lovers who met after long separation and the passing of
great dangers.
Leaving Kallikrates this Amenartas had returned to her father and
stood at his side listening to our talk. Now she broke in fiercely,
"Surely, Priestess, you were ever a bird of evil omen croaking of
disaster. You fly to Sidon and lo! Sidon burns, yet you escape with
wings unscorched. Now you flit back to Egypt and again wail of woe
like a night owl of the desert. How is it, O Isis-come-to-Earth, as it
pleases you to call yourself, that you alone escape from Sidon and
return here to curdle the blood of men with prophecies such as those
you uttered at the feast when by a trick you turned the water into
blood? Have you perchance made friends with Ochus?"
"Ask it of Philo the captain of this ship, Lady," I answered in a
quiet voice. "Or stay. Ask it of yonder priest which perchance will
please you better, the Grecian who in the world was named Kallikrates.
Ask them how I showed friendship to Ochus by so working through the
strength of Isis and their skill and valour that the Persian's finest
ship of war with a multitude of his sailors and fighting men lies
to-day at the bottom of the deep."
"Perchance because a captain was skilled and a certain priest, or
soldier, was brave, that ship is sunk with all she bore, but not, I
think, through you or your prayers, O Oracle. I say to you, Pharaoh,
my father, that if I held your sceptre I would send this /Isis-come-
to-Earth/ to seek Isis in Heaven ere she bring more sorrows on us and
Egypt."
"Nay, nay," muttered Nectanebes, rolling his big eyes, "speak not so
madly, Daughter, lest the Mother should hear and once more smite me.
Hearken. Last night I, who have skill, consulted my spirit, the Daemon
who obeys me. He came, he spoke. I heard him with my ears. Yes, he
spoke of this prophetess. He said that she drew near to Memphis on a
ship. He said that she was great, almost a goddess, that she must be
cherished, that to you and me she would be a shelter from the storm,
that in her is the power of One who sits above. O Oracle, O Isis-come-
to-Earth, O Wisdom's Daughter, forgive the wild words of this royal
child of mine who is distraught with fear, and know that, to the last,
Pharaoh is your friend and your protector."
"As mayhap, if this Daemon of yours speaks truth, before all is done I
shall be the protector of Pharaoh and of the Princess of Egypt whom it
pleases to revile me," I replied.
Then bowing to him I turned and sought my cabin.
CHAPTER XIII
THE SHAME OF PHARAOH
When Pharaoh and his daughter had gone, though I did not see them go,
I bade farewell to Philo, thanking him much and, in reward for all he
had done, calling down on him the blessing of the goddess which he
received upon his bended knees. Moreover, when he had risen from them
he swore himself to my service, saying that while he lived he would
come even from the ends of the earth to do my will. Also he showed me
how I might call him by certain secret ways.
So we bade farewell for a while, nor did I let him go empty-handed,
since from those jewels that Tenes had heaped upon me, which almost by
accident I had preserved in my flight, I took certain of great value
and gave them to him as a gift from the goddess. Thus we parted
though, as both of us were sure, not for the last time.
So soon as our coming was known the priests and priestesses of Isis
flocked to the quay in solemn procession to receive Noot, their high-
priest, and me their high-priestess, which they did with sacred
ceremony and holy chants. By them we were escorted through the streets
of Memphis to the temple of Isis accompanied by many of the crew of
the /Hapi/ that were of our brotherhood. Among them I missed one.
"Where is the priest Kallikrates?" I asked of Noot.
He smiled and answered,
"I think that he has been taken to the palace of Pharaoh to be nursed
until he recovers from his wounds. Perchance for a while he is minded,
or it is decreed that he should continue to play a warrior's part. Yet
fear not, Daughter; those upon whose brow Isis has laid her hands, in
life or death must return to her at last. They are hawks upon a string
which, though it stretches, cannot be broken."
"Aye," I answered, "in life or death," and asked no more of this
Kallikrates.
In the midst of the rejoicings of the city at our safe return, we came
to the temple and made sacrifice. There it was that I set the jewels
of Tenes, all save those that I had given to Philo, upon the alabaster
statue of the goddess in her inmost shrine that only I and Noot might
enter, and there too by signs and wonders she signified to me her
acceptance of the offering. For here while we stood alone before the
effigy of the goddess in that holy place, a trance fell upon Noot and
in his trance he spoke to me with the voice of Isis and out of her
infinite heart. This was the divine message that came to me through
the lips of Noot:
"Daughter, I, thy mother, know of all that thou hast passed and of all
that thou must pass. Though the barbarian come and the gods of Egypt
are thrown down and ruin smites the land and thou seemest to be left
alone, abide thou here till my word bids thee to depart. By myself and
That of which under the name of Isis I am a minister, I swear that no
harm shall befall thee or that place where thou art, or those of my
servants who remain with thee. Therefore await my commands with
patience, doing such things as I inspire thee to do, that thou mayest
bring the vengeance of the gods upon those dogs who desecrate their
shrines."
Thus spoke Noot in his trance, not knowing what he had said until I
told him afterward. He listened earnestly and bade me obey.
"Even if I be taken from you for a while, as it comes to me will
happen--perchance I learned it in my swoon, Daughter--and you are left
unfriended and alone, still I pray you to obey. If so, think not that
I am dead, who do but return to my own place and land, but wait until
my message comes. Then obey that also though I know not what it will
be."
Thus he spoke solemnly and I bowed my head and hid his words within my
heart----
The war began, Egypt's last war for life. Nectanebes as the Pharaoh,
inspired by his evil Daemon, thrust aside his captains and declared
himself General in Chief of his armies, he who had scarce the wit or
the courage to command the guard of a harem. At first that Daemon
served him well, since at Barathra, as the gulfs are named which make
the Sirbonian bog, the Persians were trapped and lost many thousands
of their men who sank through the sand into the marshes and there were
drowned or speared. But their numbers were uncountable and the rest
came on. Pelusium was besieged and for a while held its own against
the giant Nicostratus of Argos, a man as strong as Hercules who, like
Hercules, clothed himself in a lion's skin and for a weapon bore a
great club. The Grecian captain, Kleinios of Cos, he who had been
present at the feast when I was given over to Tenes and whom in my
vision at that feast I had seen dead, lying upon a heap of slain,
attacked Nicostratus and after a mighty fight was defeated, Kleinios
and five thousand men of those who were with him being slain. Thus was
my vision fulfilled.
Then his Daemon departed from Nectanebes taking his heart with him, for
of a sudden Pharaoh ceased to be a man and, becoming a coward, fled
back to Memphis, leaving his fleet, his cities, and their garrisons to
their fates.
Rumour ran fast; it told of the fall of city after city, some stormed,
some bribed to surrender; it told that Ochus had sworn to burn Memphis
and after it Thebes; also to seize Nectanebes and roast him living
upon the altar in the great temple of Ptah here at Memphis, or
otherwise to make him fight with the bull Apis after the beast had
been driven mad by fiery darts. It told that the Egyptians, enraged at
the desertion of their armies by Pharaoh, would themselves seize him
and give him up to Ochus as a peace-offering. Crowds gathered and
rushed through the streets of Memphis calling imprecations on his
name, or clustered like bees round the altars of the gods, praying for
help in their despair, yes, round the neglected altars of the gods of
Egypt.
Then of a sudden came Amenartas, flying to the temple of Isis for
sanctuary, since it was reported that Ochus had said that the shrines
of Isis he would spare alone, because she was the Mother of all things
and her throne was the moon and her husband was Osiris-Ra, who was the
Father of fire which he worshipped; also because a certain priestess
of the goddess had done him great service in the war, words that
caused me to wonder.
So this royal priestess came and put on the veil of a novice that it
might protect her should Ochus take the city. But though this veil
changed her face and form to the eyes of men, her heart it did not
change.
A little later came Kallikrates from the war in the Delta where I
learned that he had done great things, fighting bravely. Indeed he
told me himself that he had fought the giant Nicostratus in single
combat and wounded him, though the matter was not pressed to an end,
since others rushed up and separated them. He said that he was a very
terrible man, and that when that huge club of his wavered above him,
for the first time in his life he felt afraid. Notwithstanding he ran
in beneath the club and stabbed Nicostratus in the shoulder.
Thus it happened that all being lost in war and his service at an end,
Kallikrates the captain once more became Kallikrates the priest and
again put on the robes of Isis. Therefore in that temple, serving
together before its altars were Amenartas, Princess of Egypt, and
Kallikrates, priest of Isis.
Often I, Ayesha, seated in my chair of state as first of that holy
company, save the aged Noot alone, watched them from beneath my veil
while they anointed the statue of the goddess or joined in the sacred
chants and hymns of praise. As I watched I noted this--that always
they drew near together as though some strength compelled them; that
always their glances thrown from the corners of their eyes, met and
turned away and met again, and that always, if occasion served, the
robe of the one brushed the robe of the other, or the hand of the one
touched the hand of the other. These things I noted in silence,
wondering what judgment the goddess would call down upon this
beauteous pair who dared thus to violate her sanctuary with their
earthly passion. Oh! much I wondered, though little did I guess what
it would be and by whose hand it was destined to fall upon them.
Lastly came Nectanebes himself, his great eyes full of terror and his
fat frame wasted with woe and sleeplessness. He sought audience of me.
"O Prophetess," he said, "all is lost! Ochus Artaxerxes has his foot
upon my neck. I fly, seeking shelter beneath the wings of Isis,
seeking shelter from you, O Isis-come-to-earth. Help me, Daughter
divine, for my Daemon has deserted me, or if he comes at all it is but
to jibber and to mock."
"Strange words from Pharaoh," I answered in a voice of scorn, "very
strange words from Pharaoh who gave this same prophetess to be the
woman of a vile, Baal-serving king; from Pharaoh who has deserted his
army, his country, and his gods, and now seeks only to save his
treasure and his life."
"Reproach me not," he moaned, "Fate has been too strong for me, as
perchance one day it may be too strong for you also. At first all went
well. In the bygone years I conquered the Persian; I built temples to
the gods. Then of a sudden Fortune hid her face and now--and now!"
"Aye, O fallen Pharaoh," I answered, "and why did Fortune hide her
face? I will tell it, to whom it has been revealed. It was because
although you built temples to the gods, you were false to the gods. In
secret, following the counsel of that Daemon of yours, you made bloody
sacrifice to devils, to Baal, to Ashtoreth, and to Aphrodite of the
Greeks. Nay, do not start and deny, for I know all. Lastly, to crown
your crimes, you gave me, the high-prophetess of Isis, to the base,
red-handed Tenes, one who offered his own son to idols. What has
chanced to Tenes who took me, and say, what shall chance to him who
sold me, O Nectanebes no more a Pharaoh?"
Now I thought that surely he would kill me and cared not if he did.
For my heart was sore--oh! because of many things my heart was sore.
But like a beaten cur he only cowered at my feet, praying me to pardon
him, praying me to cease from beating him with my tongue, praying me
to counsel him. I listened and pity took hold of me, who was ever
tender-minded though a lover of justice and a hater of traitors.
"Hearken," I said at last. "If Ochus finds you here, O fallen Pharaoh,
first he will make a mock of you and then he will torture you to
death. I have heard what he will do. He will bring you to his judgment
seat and lay you bound upon your back and grind his sandals upon your
face. Then he will force you to sacrifice to the fire that he worships
and one by one to spit upon the effigies of the gods of Egypt. Lastly,
either he will cause the holy bull Apis to gore you to death, or he
will bind you upon the altar in the temple of Ptah and there slowly
with torments bring you to your end."
Now when Nectanebes heard these things, he wept and I thought that he
would swoon away.
"Hearken," I said again, "I will show you a road whereby although
defeated and disgraced you may yet win glory that shall be told of
from age to age. Summon the people while there is yet time. Go to the
temple of Ammon, King of the gods of Egypt. Stand before the shrine of
Ammon and make confession of your sins in the ears of all. Then, there
in the sight of all, slay yourself, praying Ammon and all the gods to
accept your life as an offering and to spare Egypt and the people upon
whose head you, the hated of the gods, have brought all these woes. So
can you cause the Persian and the world to marvel and say that though
accursed, still you were great, and so perchance you shall turn away
the wrath of heaven from apostate Egypt."
A flash of pride shone in his eyes that had been empty of light and
filled with tears. He lifted his head stiffly as though still it felt
the weight of the great earrings of state, the golden uraeus, and the
double crown. For a moment he looked as once he had done at Sais
reviewing his triumphant army after his first victory over the
Persians and drinking in the incense of its shouts, yes, he looked as
great Thotmes and the proud Rameses might have done in their day, a
Pharaoh, the king of all the world he knew.
"It would be well to die thus," he murmured, "it would be very well,
and then, perhaps, the gods I have betrayed would forgive me, the old,
old gods to whom thirty dynasties of recorded kings have bowed the
knee, and those who went before them for unnumbered generations. Yes,
then perhaps that great company of Pharaohs would not turn their backs
on me or spit at me when I join them at the table of Osiris. But,
Prophetess"--here his face fell in again and his crab-like eyes
projected and rolled, while his voice sank to a whisper, "Prophetess,
/I dare not/."
"Why, Nectanebes?"
"Because--oh! because years ago I struck a bargain with a certain
Power of the Under-world, a daemon if you will, at least some spirit of
evil that comes I know not whence and dwells I know not where, which
became manifest to me. It promised me glory and success if I would
sacrifice to it--nay, I will not tell what I sacrificed, but once I
had a son, yes, like Tenes I had a son----"
Here I, Ayesha, shivered, then motioned to him to speak on.
"This was the bargain, that though to please the people I might build
temples to the gods, by certain means I must defile them in their
shrines. Aye, and I did defile them, and when the priest dressed me,
the Pharaoh, in the trappings of those gods according to custom, by
thought and word and deed I blasphemed them. Yet one divinity remained
outside the pact because my Daemon warned me that she was too strong
for him and must not be offended," and he paused.
"Was she perchance named Isis?" I asked.
"Aye, prophetess, she was named Isis and therefore I never polluted
her shrine and therefore to her alone in my heart I offered prayer. So
all went well and I gathered great armies and vast wealth, I hired
Greeks by thousands to fight for me, I made alliances with many kings
and was sure that again I should defeat the Persians and be the master
of the world. Then came the evil hour of that accursed feast at which
you, the Mouth of Isis, were summoned to prophesy and, moved by some
madness, you unveiled your beauty before Tenes, and I, forgetting
whose minister you were, gave you to Tenes, thereby outraging Isis in
your person."
"Did I not warn you, Nectanebes, and did not the holy Noot warn you?"
"Aye, you warned me, but in my need I took the risk, or I forgot. From
that moment all went ill and ruin, like a giant before whom none may
stand, has hunted me by night and day."
"Yes, Nectanebes, and Isis is the name of that giant."
"I made error upon error," he went on. "I trusted to Tenes and Tenes
betrayed me. My Daemon counselled me to thrust aside the Grecian
generals and take command of the armies, and at first there was
victory, then came defeat. It might have been retrieved, but of a
sudden my courage failed me. It fell like a temple of which the
foundations have been washed out by hidden waters. It crashed down; in
a moment its proud pylons, its tall columns, its massive, honourable
walls blazoned with the records of glorious deeds, fell to a shapeless
heap hidden in the dust of shame. I am undone. I am what you see, a
loathsome worm, a wounded worm wriggling in the black slime of
despair, I who was Pharaoh."
Again pity touched me, Ayesha, and I answered,
"There still remains the road that I have pointed out. While we live,
however black our record, repentance is always possible, since
otherwise there would be no hope for man the sinner. Moreover,
repentance, if it be true, brings amendment in its train, and this
god-born pair struggling upward, hand in hand, over cruel rocks,
through swamps and streams, through brakes and briars, blinded with
tears and the gross darkness of despair, at length see the sweet shape
of Forgiveness shining before them like a holy dawn such as never
gleams upon this world. Hearken, therefore, to one who speaks not with
her own voice, or out of the foolishness of her own weak flesh, but as
she is commanded of a spirit that is within her. Go to the temple of
Ammon and there in the presence of the people make confession of your
sins and fall, a sacrifice, upon your sword. Self-murder is a sin, but
occasions come when to live on is a greater sin, since it is better to
die for others than to cherish breath that poisons them."
"To die! There you speak it, Prophetess. I say again that I dare not
die. When I die I pass to the Daemon. This was the pact: that for my
life he should give me success and glory and that in return after
death, I should surrender him my soul."
"Is it so?" I answered. "Well, the bargain is ancient, as old as the
world, I think; one also that every human being in his degree seals or
refuses to seal in this way or in that. Still my counsel holds. This
Daemon of yours has broken his oath, for where now are the success and
glory, Nectanebes? Therefore he cannot claim the fulfilment of your
own."
"Nay, Prophetess," he answered in a wailing voice, "he has /not/
broken it. From the first he told me that I must work no harm to Isis
the Mother, since the Queen of Heaven was more powerful than all the
denizens of hell, and that if once it were spoken, her Word of
Strength would pierce and shrivel him like a red-hot sword and cutting
his web of spells, would bring his oaths to nothingness and me with
them. And now the web is cut, and I the painted insect that it meshed,
fall from it to where the hell-born spider sits in his hole.
Prophetess, I have seen him with these eyes, I have seen his orbs of
fire, I have seen his snout and fangs like to those of a crocodile, I
have seen his great hairy arms and the searching talons stretched out
to grip me, and I tell you that I dare not die to be cast into the
jaws of the Devourer and burn eternally in his belly of flames. Show
me how to save my life, so that I may continue to look upon the sun.
Oh! because you are a tender woman and charitable, though I have
sinned against you, show me how to save my life."
Now hearing this creature plead with me thus, this coward who at the
last did not dare go face the indignant gods like a man, saying, as a
great soul should, "I have deeply erred, O ye Gods; I repent, pardon
me of your nobility, or slay my soul and make an end," my pity left me
and its place was filled with scorn and loathing.
"Those who would live when the Persian dogs are on their heels, must
fly fast and far, Nectanebes; they must fly like the deer of the
desert on whom the hunters close. The road up Nile is empty,
Nectanebes; as yet there are no Persians there. As you would not die,
take it and live."
"Aye," he said as the thought went home, "why not? I have still a vast
treasure; for many years I have hoarded against misfortune, for who
can put all his trust in any Daemon? With it I can buy friends in the
south; with it I may found another empire among the Ethiopians or
those of Punt. Why should I not fly, Prophetess?"
"I know not," I answered, "save that Death is always fast and untiring
and in the end wears down the swiftest runner."
This I said darkly for at that moment there came into my mind a vision
that once I had seen of a certain servile slave, aforetime a Pharaoh,
that same royal slave who grovelled before me; yea, a vision of him
throttling in a rope while black men mocked him. Yet of that I said
nothing, only added,
"If it should please you to go south, Nectanebes, would it please you
also to take with you that royal and beautiful lady, Amenartas your
daughter, aforetime Princess of Egypt?"
"Nay," he answered sharply, "since hour by hour she scourges me with
her tongue because I am fallen. Let her abide here under the veil of
Isis. Yet why do you ask this, Prophetess?"
"Because of Isis. Because, as I think, this lady of the royal blood
makes play with a certain priest who is sworn to Isis, and the goddess
does not love that her vowed servitors should desert her for the sake
of mortal woman."
"What priest?" he asked dully.
"A Greek who is named Kallikrates."
"I know him, Prophetess. A very beauteous man, like to their own
Apollo; a brave one too who did good service yonder in the marshes,
fighting the giant general whom he wounded. Also I remember that in
the past he was a captain of my guard before he became a priest and
that there was trouble concerning him, though what trouble I forget,
save that Amenartas pleaded for him. Well, if he has offended you,
there are still those who do my will. Send for him, and if it pleases
you, he shall be killed. I give you his life. Yes, his blood shall
flow at your feet. Indeed I will command it at once, since you tell me
he has shamed the goddess or angered you, her priestess," and he
opened his hands to clap them, summoning the messengers of death.
I saw, I thrust my arm between so that they struck not upon each
other, but upon my soft flesh, making no sound.
"Nay," I said, "this warrior-priest is a good servant of the Queen
Isis, one, moreover, who fought for me, her prophetess, upon the seas.
He shall not die for so small a matter. Yet I pray you, Nectanebes,
take with you the royal princess Amenartas, when you fly south with
your treasure."
"Aye," he answered wearily, "as it is your desire I'll take her if she
will come, though if so there will be small rest for me."
Then he went, bowing to me humbly, and this was my farewell to
Nectanebes, the last Pharaoh of Egypt. I watched him go and wondered
whether I had done well in forbidding him to kill Kallikrates. It came
into my mind that the death of this man would save me much trouble.
Why should he not die as others did who had sinned against the
goddess? An answer rose within me. It was that he had sinned, not only
against the goddess, but also against me--and this by preferring
another woman before me.
Was I then so feeble that I could not hold my own against another
woman should I choose to do so? Nay. Yet my trouble was that I did not
choose.
Now I saw the truth. My rebellious flesh desired that which my spirit
rejected. My spirit was far from this man, yet my flesh would have him
near. Aye, my flesh said: "Let him be slain rather than another should
take him," while my spirit answered, "What has he to do with one whose
soul is set upon things above? Let him go his way, and go you yours.
Above all, be not stained with his blood."
So I let him go, not knowing that it was written in the books of Fate
that I /must/ be stained with his blood, steeped in it to the eyes.
Aye, I saved him from the sword of Nectanebes and let him go,
determining to think of him no more.
Yet as it chanced Fate played me an evil trick in this matter. On the
morrow, or the next day, I sat in the gloom of the outer sanctuary
praying to the goddess to ease me of my sore heart, for alas! strive
as I would to hide it, that heart was sore. There came a white-robed
priest, Kallikrates himself, but changed indeed from that glorious
Grecian warrior who had beat back the boarders on the /Hapi/, or who
had fought in single combat with the giant Nicostratus. For now the
little golden curls were shaven from his head and he was pale with the
thin diet of the fruits of the earth and pure water which alone might
pass the lips of those who were sworn to Isis, enough indeed for me
who touched no other food, or such a one as the aged Noot, but not for
a great-framed man bred to the trade of arms. Moreover, his face was
troubled as though with some struggle of the soul.
He passed me unseen and going to the statue of the goddess, knelt down
before it and prayed earnestly, perhaps for help and blessing. Rising
at length, once more he passed me and I saw that his gray eyes were
full of tears and longed to comfort him. Also I saw that still he
carried on his hand that ring talisman which I had set there upon the
ship /Hapi/, that it might perchance defend him from the evil
influences which desire and compass the death of men.
He went out across the pillared court toward the cloister at its end.
From this cloister appeared a woman, the dark and beauteous Amenartas
herself. This was easy to see since, I know not why, she had put off
the veil of Isis and was gloriously attired in the robes of a princess
--scanty enough I thought them, for they left bare much of her
loveliness--while on her dark and abundant hair shone a golden circlet
from which rose the royal uraeus, and on her arms and bosom sparkled
jewels and necklaces.
They meet by plan, thought I to myself. But it was not so, for seeing
her, Kallikrates started and turned to fly; also he covered his eyes
with his hand as though to hide her beauty from him. She lifted her
face like one who pleads, yes, and when he would not hearken, caught
him by the hand and drew him into the shadow of the cloister.
There they remained a long while, for at this hour the place was
deserted by all. At length they appeared again on the edge of the
shadow and I saw that her arms were about him and that her head rested
on his breast. They separated. She vanished into the shadows and went
her way, while he walked to and fro across the court, muttering to
himself like a man who knows not what he does.
I came from my place and met him, saying,
"Surely you are troubled, Priest. Can it be that the goddess refuses
your prayers? Or is it perchance that you weary of them and would
still play the part of a warrior of warriors as you did on the galley
/Hapi/, or but the other day yonder in the northern marshes? If so, it
is too late, Priest, for Egypt is fallen and all is lost. That is,
unless, like Mentor and many of your race, you would sell your sword
to Ochus Artaxerxes."
"Aye, Prophetess," he answered, "Egypt is lost which, being a Greek,
should not trouble me over much, and I too am lost, I, the driven of an
evil fate."
"Speak on it if it pleases you. Or be silent if it pleases you, O
Priest. What the prophetess hears, she tells only to the Mother."
Then I turned and went back into the shadow of the shrine where I
leaned against a pillar--I remember that on it was sculptured the
scene of Thoth weighing hearts before Osiris. Here I waited, wondering
whether he would follow me or go his ways.
For a while he stood hesitating, but at length he followed me.
"Prophetess," he said hoarsely, "I speak under the veil of Isis,
knowing that such confessions cannot be revealed. Yet it is hard to
speak, since the matter has to do with woman, aye, and with yourself,
most holy Prophetess."
"In Isis I have no self," I answered.
"Prophetess, in bygone years, as I think you know, I learned to love a
royal maiden, one set far above me, and it seems that she loved me.
That passion brought a brother's blood upon my hands, as you also
know. I fled to the goddess, seeking peace and forgiveness. For in me
I think there are two selves, the self of my body and the self of my
soul."
"As in most that breathe beneath the sun," I answered, sighing.
"I was bred a soldier, one who came from a race of soldiers, men of
high blood and good to look upon, as once I was, though in this garb
few would guess it."
"I have seen you wearing war-harness and can guess," I answered,
smiling a little.
"That soldier-self, Prophetess, was as are others of the breed. I
drank and I revelled, I bowed the knee to Aphrodite, loving women and
for an hour being loved. I fought, not without honour. Then seeking
advancement, with my brother I entered the service of Pharaoh, and of
that story doubtless you know the rest."
I bowed my head and he went on,
"I came to Philae, I made confession, I took the first vows. At night
and alone I was led to the sanctuary, there to see the vision of the
goddess. I saw that vision glowing in the darkened shrine, and oh! it
was glorious."
Here I started and watched him narrowly, wondering how much he knew or
guessed.
"Something took hold of me, Prophetess, for now I beheld her whom all
my soul adored, her with whom it would be united. It was as though a
memory came to me from afar, a memory and a promise. That Power which
took hold of me caused me to bend my head as though to kiss the vision
and thereby pledge my soul to the divine. The vision also bent its
head and our lips met, and lo! hers were like to those of mortal
woman, yet sweeter far."
"The Mother is mistress of all shapes, Priest. Yet think not that she
forgets the pledge that thus it pleased her to accept. From that
moment you were sworn to her, and doubtless in a day to come, in this
form or in that, she will claim you--should you remain true to her, O
Priest."
"The years passed," he went on, "and true I remained. Fate brought me
here to Memphis and in this temple I saw you, holy Prophetess, and
learned to worship you from afar, not with the body, but with the
spirit; since to me you were and are what the vulgar call you, /Isis-
come-to-Earth/, and the sight of you ever put me in mind, as it does
to-day, of that divine vision whose lips met mine in the shrine at
Philae. Perchance you never knew it, but thus with my spirit I
worshipped you."
Now I, Ayesha, remained silent, leaning against the pillar, for
weakness took hold of me who felt as though I were about to fall. Yet
--and let the vengeful gods write this to my honour--yet I made him no
sign that I was she who had played the part of Isis in the sanctuary.
"It is well," I said presently, "and doubtless at the appointed hour
the goddess will thank you. But what then is your trouble, Priest? To
love a goddess with the spirit is no crime."
"Aye, Prophetess. But what if he who loves the goddess with his spirit
and is sworn to her alone for ever in a vow of perpetual chastity,
should love a woman with his flesh and thus betray both heaven and his
own soul?"
"Then, Priest," I answered, speaking very low, "I fear that he is one
whose hope of forgiveness is but small. Yet for those who repent and
deny, there is pardon. Only they must deny, they must deny while there
is still time."
"Easy to say and hard to do," he answered, "at least for him who has
to deal with one that will not be denied; with one who holds his heart
in the hollow of her hand and crushes it; with one whose eyes are like
star-beacons to which the wanderer must fly; with one whose breath is
as roses and whose lips are as honey; with one who can drive the
desires of man as a racer drives his chariot; with one to whom oaths
also have been sworn, such oaths as the youth swears to the maid in
the first madness of the flesh, decreed by those who made it.
Goddesses are far away, but woman is near; moreover, among men there
is a law which even a prophetess may understand, which says that oaths
vowed with the lips may not be broken to benefit the vower's soul."
"These are ancient arguments," I answered; "from age to age they echo
from the roofs of the temples of Aphrodite and of Ashtoreth, but Isis
knows them not. The flesh is given to mankind that its wearers may
learn to scorn and trample it; the spirit is given to mankind that its
holders may learn to rise upon its wings. Woe to those who choose the
flesh and reject the spirit. Repentance is still possible, and after
it comes amendment and after amendment, forgiveness."
He brooded awhile, then said,
"Prophetess, I repent who above all things desire at the end--that end
which again and again I have sought in battle wherever it has passed
me by--to be united with the goddess, shaped like the divine one whom
I saw at the shrine of Philae. Yes, with her and with no other. But how
can I amend who am a lion in a net, a net woven of woman's hair?"
Now I searched him with my eyes and learned that although so sore
beset, this man spoke nothing but the truth. Then I answered,
"The wise bird flies the snare which it sees spread in its sight.
To-morrow at the dawn Noot the Holy sails north to meet certain
ambassadors of the Persians and if he can make terms, to ransom the
temples of Isis from the rage of Ochus. Will you go with him,
breathing no word of his purpose or of yours? If so, perchance thus at
last you shall find that goddess whose lips met yours at Philae, here--
or otherwhere."
He thought awhile, then muttered,
"It is hard, very hard, yet I will go; I who would satisfy my soul and
not my flesh."
As he spoke a tall priestess flitted past us, passing from shadow into
shadow, but thinking that she was one of those whose duty it was to
watch the inner shrine at this hour, I took no note of her. Nor did
Kallikrates, lost in his own thoughts, so much as see her.
CHAPTER XIV
THE BEGUILING OF BAGOAS
That night Noot my master came to bid farewell to me.
"I go north as I have been commanded--as to how the command came, let
that be--hoping thereby to preserve the temples of our worship and
those who serve in them. I know not if I shall return, or when, and
therefore, Daughter of my spirit, it grieves me to part from you in
these troublous times. Yet the command said that you must not
accompany me but bide here. For your comfort, learn two things: first,
that no harm shall come to you, as I have told you before; and
secondly, though that hour be far away, even in the flesh we shall
meet again. Wait then till my word comes to you."
I bowed my head in obedience and asked whether he was unattended.
"Nay, Daughter," he answered. "I take with me certain of our
fellowship, and among them that Greek Kallikrates who has asked leave
to accompany me. Being a man of war, as you have seen, he may
perchance prove of service upon such a mission. How he learned that I
was going I cannot say," he added, looking at me curiously.
"I told him. Ask no more, Master."
"There is little need, I think," he answered, smiling. "It may please
you to learn," he added bitterly, "that the traitor who was Pharaoh,
flies up Nile to-morrow ere the dawn. Already they lade his ship with
the chests of Egypt's treasure, many of them, that should have gone to
pay his soldiers and strengthen his allies."
"May the counting of them comfort him in his honourable exile among
the Ethiopians! Yet, my Master, I think that he will need to count
quickly, unless it pleased the gods to send a false vision to me when
I prophesied in the palace yonder, ere this shameless Nectanebes gave
the Daughter of Isis to Tenes the Sidonian."
"If so, Ayesha, the gods sent a false vision to me also. How will he
face them, I wonder, with the blood of Egypt on his hands, and with
what voice will he tell them of their desecrated shrines?"
"I know not, Master, yet it was written that because of her apostasies
and sins Egypt must fall. Can the gods, then, be wroth with their own
instrument?"
Noot pondered awhile, shaking his head, then answered,
"Go ask that question of the Sphinx who sits yonder in the sand by the
pyramids of the ancient kings brooding, as the legend says, over the
secrets of earth and heaven. Or," he added slowly, "when your own days
are done, Ayesha, ask it of your soul. Perchance then some god will
make clear the riddle of the world below, but here on earth it cannot
be answered, since he who could read it would know all things and be
himself a god. Sin must come, and to sin, sinners are necessary. But
to what sin is necessary, I do not know, unless it be that from it
good is born at last. At least the sinner can plead that he is but an
arrow on the bow of Destiny and that the arrow must fly where the
shooter aims, even though it drinks innocent blood, widows women, and
makes children fatherless."
"Mayhap, my Master, it will be answered to this arrow that it
fashioned itself to deal out death; that it grew the wood and forged
the barb and bound upon its shaft the feathers of desire; which wood,
had it chosen otherwise, here or elsewhere might have flourished--a
tree bearing fruits--or as seasoned wood, shaped itself to be a staff
to lean upon or a rod of justice in the hands of kings."
"You are wise, Ayesha, nor have I instructed you in vain," he replied
with a gentle smile. "Yet I repeat, when for the last time you watch
the sun sink and your soul prepares to follow it over the edge of the
world, then again propound to it this riddle and hear the answer of
that invisible Sphinx which broods in the heaven above, on the earth
below, and in the breast of every child it bears."
Thus he spoke and waved his hand, making an end of that debate. Nor
have I ever forgotten it, or his words, and now when sometimes I feel
or hope soon I, even I, the half-immortal, may see the sun sink for
the last time, once more, as Noot commanded, I ask this riddle of the
Sphinx that broods within my instructed spirit, and wait its answer.
For alas and alas! how am I better than Nectanebes? He betrayed the
gods. Have I not betrayed the gods who were nearer to me than ever
they came to his coarse and gluttonous soul? He shed blood to satisfy
his rage and lust. Have I not shed blood and shall I not perchance
shed more of it before all is done, when my unconquerable appetites
are on me and there is a dear prize that I would win? He fled with the
treasures of Egypt to waste them in the desert sand. Have I not fled
with the treasures that were given me--with the jewelled crowns of my
wisdom, with the golden talents of my heaped-up learning, with the
alabaster vessel of my beauty, with the perfumes of my power and my
eloquence--that drilled, ordered, and massed together, and added to
the greatest gift of all, my length of undying days, might have
reformed the world and led it into peace?
Have I, Ayesha, not fled with all these countless splendours clasped
upon my breast, and buried them in the wilderness, as did Nectanebes
with Egypt's wealth, before the barbarians slew him? Have I not done
these things because of a great desire and because, robbed of that
desire, the world I should have guided was gall to my tongue and
gravel to my teeth? Yet was I to blame? Was not that blind man I loved
to blame who could not see with his darkened, fleshy eyes the glory
that lay within his grasp and thus stirred my soul to madness? Was not
the woman to blame also who darkened those eyes of his by arts the
evil gods had given her?
Oh! I know not. Perchance they too can put up a tale before the
Judgment Seat which I shall find it hard to answer, for they too are
as they were made, or as they made themselves, shaping their own
arrows from the wood of circumstance that grew I know not where. And
now my desire has drawn near to me again; it gleams, a glittering
fruit, upon the Tree of Life, and I stretch out my hand to pluck it.
Yes, I stand on tiptoe and almost reach it with my finger-tips. Yet
what if it prove a corruption? What if it crumble into dust, rotted by
the great sun of my spirit, withered at the fingering of my undying
hand?
Oh! my lord hunts upon the mountain after the fashion of men, and
Atene, once named Amenartas, sits in her dark beauty in the City of
the Plains and, as aforetime, plots my ruin and her fleshly theft. Who
knows the end? But there within my soul broods the Sphinx smiling its
immortal smile and to it soon or late I must put that question to
which Noot, the holy and half divine, could give no answer--or would
not if he could.
"What of the royal Princess, Amenartas?" I asked. "Know, Master, that
I grow weary of this woman."
"Aye, Daughter, these temple courts are wide, but not wide enough for
both of you. Take comfort, she sails to-morrow."
"North?" I asked.
"Nay, south with her father, Nectabenes. Or so she tells me, saying
that his fortune shall be her own and that together they will reign or
fall."
"It is well," I answered.
Then we talked of humble matters that had to do with the shrine of the
goddess and of the hiding away of her treasures lest the Persians
should take them. When all was finished, Noot rose, blessed me,
calling on the Powers above to protect me, and went his ways in the
ship /Hapi/ which he had purchased to bring it to my aid at Sidon, nor
did I guess that for years I should see him no more. Yet I think he
knew it well.
Like a mighty river in its flood the Persian hosts poured down on
Memphis. As such a torrent sweeps away the village and the humble
homestead, drowns the cattle, twists out the palm trees by their
roots, covers the corn with slime, floods cities, palaces, and
temples, chokes the breath from their inhabitants and strews the kind
earth with the corpses of those that tilled it, so did Ochus and his
barbarians to Egypt. Rapine and massacre, flames of fire and misery
marked their path. Men were butchered by the thousand, the aged and
women who were no longer fair were driven into the desert to starve.
Yes, it was the sport of those Persians to drive them like game to
where there was no water, and then watch them die of thirst beneath
the burning sun. Only the young women were spared to be concubines or
slaves, and the flower of the children to be put to vile purposes. The
cities and the temples were pillaged, their citizens tortured to drag
from them the secret of the hiding-places of treasure, the priests
were forced to sacrifice to the god of fire and to spit upon their own
or die, the priestesses were burned or defiled, or both.
So pitiful was the case of Egypt that although I knew that by her sins
and faithlessness she had brought these woes upon herself, I who by my
work at Sidon had become one of the appointed ministers of her
destruction, my heart wept for her and I prayed the avenging gods to
hold their hands. Also I prayed them to give Ochus to drink of his own
cup and to make of me the butler who mixed his wine. Nor did I pray in
vain.
Thus the red Ochus came at length to Memphis, the white-walled city,
the ancient, the holy, and filled its streets with horror, till they
were spread thick with dead and one wail of woe went up to heaven. Yet
he did not burn the place, perchance because our prayers availed and
the gods relented, perchance because he wished to keep it to be the
seat of his majesty. Only here as elsewhere he sacked the temples and
wrought sacrilege.
From the pylon top of the temple of Isis that overlooked the courts of
that of Ptah and the gilded stable of the bull Apis, with my own eyes
I saw the Persians, for in this business the Greeks would have no
hand, drag out the sacred beast whom they held to be a god of the
Egyptians, though in truth he was but the emblem of the god, or rather
of the generating power that is in Nature, and butcher it with jeers
and mockery. More, their scullions came and cooked the sacred flesh
after which, at tables spread in the inner court, Ochus and his
captains ate it, forcing the priests of Ptah to "taste of their own
god" and to drink of the liquor in which it had been seethed. They
were cowards, those priests, or surely they would have found means to
mix the broth with poison.
After the feast, when all the revellers were drunk with wine, a great
jackass was brought and, the statue of the god having been thrown out
of it, was stabled in the sanctuary.
Such were some of the things that were done in Memphis and indeed
throughout Egypt, for as Apis was served, so was the holy ram of
Mendes. Moreover, other things were done too shameful to record.
Now all this while I sat in the temple of Isis awaiting what might
befall. I will not say that I was unafraid, because I was afraid. Yet
within me was that proud spirit which forbade me to show my fear.
Moreover, within me also burned a certain fire of faith whereof the
light was my guide in the darkness of despair. The holy Noot, my
Master, had told me that I and those with me should take no harm, and
I would not doubt my Master. Moreover, when I prayed at night, a voice
from heaven speaking in my heart seemed to command me to be brave,
since there fought for me and mine those whom I could not see.
So there I sat quite alone with none to counsel me and none to help
me, giving courage as best I could to those poor priests and
priestesses, my fellow servants of the goddess. The worship of the
temple went on as before, each morn the statue of the Mother was
decked and dressed, the perfumes were poured, the offerings were made,
the processions wound round the courts preceded by the singers and the
shakers of the /sistrum/, while at night the holy hymns were chanted
to the stars.
The Persians came to know of these things and gathered at the gates,
amazed.
"Who are these," they asked, "who have no fear?"
But we answered nothing though death stared us in the face.
The matter reached the ears of Ochus and stirred his wonder, so that
in the end he came in person to visit the temple. I received him in
the great hall, veiled and seated in a chair of state that was set at
the foot of a statue of the goddess. With him were sundry of his great
lords dressed in silks and perfumed, also the general Mentor, whom I
had known at Sidon where he played traitor, deserting with his Greeks
to the Persians. Further there was present Bagoas the eunuch and first
councillor of the King of kings, who commanded his army also; like all
these unfortunates, a fat, shrill-voiced man with a smooth and furtive
manner, who waved his long hands to and fro when he spoke.
Now this Bagoas was by birth Egyptian; so I had heard, and my first
sight of him confirmed the tale. Yes, without doubt by birth he was an
Egyptian of the small-boned, large-eyed, round-headed type that had
descended from the ancient blood, as I knew by the statues of many
that I have seen taken from the earliest tombs before it became the
custom to embalm the dead. I noted this, and at once a thought came to
me.
Would an Egyptian desire to see the sanctuary of Isis and her priests
desecrated and destroyed? Perchance he did not worship Ptah or Apis,
or other of the gods, but all born upon the Nile venerated Mother
Isis, the Queen of Heaven, and bowed to her sovereignty. That was a
faith which where'er they wandered and upon whatever altars they
burned incense, they never could forget, because through a hundred
generations it came down to them with their blood. Yet who knew? This
Bagoas, it was said, was a cunning fellow steeped in murder, who from
his crimes had reaped a rich reward, and such an one, looking only to
his day of glory, might forget even Isis and the wrath to come.
Ochus, loose-lipped, cruel-faced, and weary-eyed, wearing a look of
pride that yet was full of haunting terrors, such as are ever the
companions of murderers who know that in a day unborn surely
themselves they will be murdered, stood before me. I, rising from my
chair, made obeisance to the King of kings--and had he but known it,
cast the curse of Isis at him from beneath my veil.
"What is this?" he asked, speaking in Greek, in the thick voice of one
who has drunk well at the feast, and pointing at me with his sceptre.
"Is it one of those wrapped bodies that we drag from the tombs, such
as we used for the cooking of the god Apis, broiling him with his own
worshippers? Nay, for it moves and talks and seems to have the shape
of a woman. Bagoas, strip that veiled thing naked, that we may see
whether it be a woman, and if so, of what favour."
Now when I, Ayesha, heard this, at once all my courage came back to
me, as ever it does when peril gets me by the throat. At once I laid
my plan, which was short and simple.
If that eunuch so much as advanced to lay a finger on me, I would draw
the knife that hung to my girdle, the curved, razor-edged Arab knife
that had been my father's, and thrusting him aside, I would spring
past him and strike it through the heart of yonder King of kings,
sending him to sum up his account with Isis. Then if there were time,
I would serve Bagoas in the same way, and afterward, if must be, use
the knife upon myself. Better thus than that I should be shamed before
these barbarians.
I spoke no word and my face was hid, yet I think that out of my soul
sprang something which warned these two of their danger. Or perchance
it was my guardian spirit that warned them. At the least Bagoas went
down upon his knees and bowed till his forehead touched the ground.
"O King of kings," he said, "I pray thee command not thy slave to do
this deed. Yonder lady is the prophetess of Isis, Queen of all gods,
Queen of Heaven and Earth, and to touch her with an unhallowed hand is
a sacrilege that brings death in this world and in that to come
everlasting torment."
Now Ochus laughed brutally, then turned and asked,
"What do you say, Mentor, who are a Greek and know no more of the gods
of Egypt than I do? Is there any reason why we should not strip this
veiled priestess and discover what she is like beneath those
wrappings?"
Now Mentor rubbed his brow and answered,
"Since I am asked, O King of kings, one does come into my mind. Do you
remember Tenes, King of the Sidonians? He took this same prophetess as
a gift from Nectanebes, and also wished to strip her in his fashion.
Well, Tenes came to a very bad end, and so did Nectanebes who gave her
to him, or is in the way of it. Therefore, O King of kings, were I in
your place I should advise that she remain veiled, who perhaps after
all is but an ugly old woman. I have known little of Isis, still she
is a goddess with a great name and perchance it is scarcely worth
while to risk her wrath to look at the wrinkled flesh of an ugly old
woman. One never knows, O King of kings, and I have seen so much of it
of late that I come to learn that death, with the curse of Heaven
thrown in, is a bad business."
Thus spoke Mentor in his bluff, rambling, soldier talk, that yet was
so full of Grecian cunning, and Ochus, appearing suddenly to grow
sober, listened to him.
"I seem to remember," Ochus said, "that this same priestess served me
well yonder at Sidon, giving the Phoenician dog, Tenes, counsel that
led him down to ruin. So at least the tale runs. Therefore, not
because of the Egyptian goddess whom I despise," and he spat on the
statue of Isis, an act at which I saw Bagoas shiver, "or for the
reasons that you fools give, but because by design or chance, I know
not which, she served me well at Sidon, let her continue to wear her
veil. I command also that this temple, which is beautiful in its
fashion, shall not be burned or harmed, and that those who serve it
may continue to dwell there and carry on their mad worship as it
pleases them, provided that they stay within its walls and do not
attempt to stir up the people by pageantry in the streets. In token
thereof I stretch out my sceptre," and he held the ivory-headed wand
he carried toward me.
Bagoas whispered to me that I must touch it, so I thrust my arm
between the folds of my veil and did so, though next instant I
remembered that it would have been wiser to grasp the wand from
beneath the veil.
At once Ochus noted the beauty of that arm and exclaimed with a laugh,
"By the holy fire! yonder hand and wrist are not those of an ugly old
woman, such as was spoken of by you slaves, but rather those of one
who is still young and fair. Had I seen them but a moment gone, surely
she would have been stripped. Indeed----"
"I have touched the sceptre of the Great King," I broke in coldly.
"Once the sceptre has been touched the decree of the Great King may
not be altered."
"Wise also," said Ochus, "for she knows our Persian laws. Well, she is
right. The sceptre has been touched, and what has been said cannot be
changed. See now, all of you who are ignorant, how good a shield is
wisdom. Come, Mentor, let us be going to make sport with those young
priestesses of Ammon who, not being wise, but only pretty, await us in
the palace. It will be a merry night. Bagoas, bide you here, lest you
should be shocked," and he laughed brutally, "also to inquire whether
this heavenly harlot called Isis decks herself with jewels, for if so,
as to them I swore no oath. Farewell, Priestess. Continue to be wise
and to wear a veil, because of the rest of you is as shapely as your
hand, who knows but that some night when wine has drowned all
promises, I, or others, might cause you to be stripped at last."
Then he turned and went, followed by his foul company. Only Bagoas
remained behind as he had been bidden.
When the doors had closed and by the shouts from without the walls I
knew that the Persians were gone, I said to Bagoas, who was alone with
me in the place,
"Tell me, Egyptian, cradled beneath the wings of Isis, are you not
afraid?" and I turned my head, glancing at the vile stain upon the
alabaster statue.
"Aye, Prophetess," he answered, "I am afraid, as much afraid as you
were but now."
"Fool!" I mocked back at him, "I was not afraid. Ere ever a hand had
been laid upon me by you, you would have been dead, and that king whom
you serve would have been dead also--ask me not how--and by now your
souls would be writhing beneath the hooks of the Tormentors of the
Under-world. Have you not heard of the curse of Isis, Eunuch, and do
you think that your pomp and power can protect you from her swift
sword? Now, /now/, should I but breathe one prayer to her, she can
slay you if she wills."
He quaked, he fell on his knees; yes, this murderer of kings fell upon
his knees before me, one veiled woman in a shrine, imploring me to
spare him and to protect him from the wrath of Heaven. For in his soul
Bagoas was still Egyptian, and the blood of his forefathers who had
worshipped Isis for a thousand years still ran strong in him.
Moreover, he feared me, the priestess whose fame he knew as he knew
the fate of those who had offended me.
"Forgiveness! Protection! Methinks these must be most dearly bought,
Bagoas. Are you one of those who have eaten the flesh of Apis and
dragged the virgins of Ammon from their sanctuary? Are you one of
those who have stabled an ass in the temple of Ptah, have burned the
ancient fanes and have butchered the priests upon their altars?"
"Alas! I am," he said, beating his breast, "but not of my own will.
What I did I must do, or die."
"It may be so. Make your own peace with those gods if you can. I have
little to do with them who serve the Supreme Mother. But for her what
atonement?" and again I glanced at the foul stain upon the alabaster
of the image.
"That is what I need to be told. What atonement, Prophetess? I will
swear that there are no jewels here; that the Mother is decked only
with flowers and perfumes. I will guard this shrine so that never
again a Persian sets foot within its walls. I will cause any who
offend you, Prophetess, to die secretly and at once. Is it enough?"
"Nay, nor by a hundredth part. You would spare the ceremonial
trappings of the Mother, but where is the vengeance upon him who
defiled her with his spittle? You would protect the priestess, but
where is vengeance upon him who would have stripped her stark to be
his sport and that of his barbarians? If that is all you have to
offer, Bagoas, take the Mother's curse and that of her Oracle, and get
you down to hell." Here Bagoas lifted his hand as though to protect
his head and began to protest, but without heeding him I went on,
"Hurry not, linger as long as you will upon the road. Deck yourself
like a woman with broidered robes, perfume yourself with scents; set
chains about your neck and jewels upon your fingers. Pander to the
lusts you cannot share and take your pay in gold and provinces. Poison
those you hate and from pure children wring out their lives, because
these stand between you and the fruit of some new phantasy. Glut
yourself with the swine's food of earth, swell yourself out with the
marsh-gas of power, and then, Bagoas, die! die! one year, ten years,
fifty years hence, and get you down to hell and look upon the awful
eyes of the goddess you have shamed, of her whom your forefathers
worshipped from the beginning, and wait the coming of her priestess,
that with every merciless particular she may lay the count against you
from the pavement of the Judgment Hall."
"What, then, shall I do? What shall I do to save my soul? Know,
Priestess, that I who am maimed in my body would save my soul, and
that all these gauds you count are but gall and ashes to me; for
having nought else to gain--being robbed of wives and children I needs
must seek them and thus drug the spirit that is within me. Oh! it is
something--being what I am, that I should feel the necks of all these
great ones writhing beneath my foot. Yes," here his voice dropped to a
whisper, "even that of the King of kings himself, who forgets that
there were other Kings of kings before him. Tell me--what must I do?"
Secretly I drew the curved knife at my girdle; secretly and unwincing,
unseen of him, I gashed my arm--oh! I cut deep, for I can see the mark
to-day, though this fair flesh of mine once seemed to perish in the
immortal fire, but to re-arise elsewhere. The blood from a severed
vein leaped forth and stained my veil, a little mark at first which
grew and grew, till it cried of murder. The man's eyes fastened
themselves upon the prodigy, for so he thought it; then he asked,
"Blood! /Whose/ blood?"
"Perchance that of the wounded goddess. Perchance that of a shamed
priestess. What does it matter, Bagoas?"
"Blood," he went on, "for what does the blood ask?"
"Perchance it cries to Heaven for vengeance; perchance it demands to
be washed away with other blood, Bagoas. Who am I that I should
interpret parables?"
Now he understood, and struggling from his knees, bent forward
whispering in my ear. Yes, the priceless jewels that hung from his
pointed golden cap jingled against my ear.
"I understand," he said, "and be sure it shall be done. But not yet.
It cannot be yet. Still I swear that it shall be done when the hour is
ripe. I hate him! I say that I hate him who while he showers gifts
upon me with his hands, mocks me with his tongue, and who, when by my
wit I win victories for him, jeers at the soldiers who are led by one
who is neither man nor woman. Yes, I hate him who, knowing that I am
of Egypt, forces me to desecrate their shrines and to butcher those
who serve them. Oh! I swear that it shall be done in its season."
"By what, O Bagoas?"
"By this, Prophetess," and seizing the dripping veil he rubbed that
which stained it upon his lips and brow, "I swear by the blood of
Isis, or of her Priestess and Oracle in whom Isis is, that I will
neither rest nor stay till I bring Ochus Artaxerxes to his doom. Years
may go by, but still I will bring him to his doom--at a price."
"What price?" I asked.
"That of absolution, Priestess, which is yours to give."
"Aye, it is mine to give or to withhold. Yet I give it not until Ochus
lies dead, and by your hand. Then I call it down from Heaven--not
before."
"At least protect me till that hour, O Daughter of the Queen of
Heaven."
From the necklace I wore beneath my veil I loosed a certain charm of
power, the secret symbol of the Queen herself, worked cunningly in
jasper, and known only to the initiate. This I breathed upon and
blessed.
"Take it," I said, "and wear it on your heart. It shall protect you
from all ills while your heart is true. But if once that heart turns
from its purpose, then this holy token shall bring all ills upon you,
here and hereafter, Bagoas. For then upon your doomed head shall fall
the curse of the goddess that even now hangs suspended over it, as in
the Grecian fable the sword of Damocles hangs by its single hair. Take
it and be gone, to return no more till you come to tell me that Ochus
Artaxerxes treads that same road upon which he has set so many feet."
Bagoas took the talisman and pressed it on his brow, as though it had
been the very signet of the King of kings, and hid it away about him.
Then he prostrated himself before me, who sat upon a greater throne,
that of the Queen of queens, prostrated himself till his forehead
touched the ground beneath my feet. Then rising, without another word,
Bagoas withdrew himself with humble obeisances till he reached the
doors where he vanished from my sight.
When the man had gone I, Ayesha, laughed aloud, I who had played a
great game and won it.
Yes, I laughed aloud; then, having purified the statue of the goddess
and burnt incense before it, I went upon my knees and returned my
humble thanks to that just Heaven of which I was the minister.
CHAPTER XV
THE PLOT AND THE VOICE
The weary years went by. Ochus returned to Persia, bearing his spoils
with him and leaving one Sabaco, a brutal fellow, to rule Egypt and
wring tribute from her.
All this while I, Ayesha, sat alone, quite alone, in the temple of
Isis at Memphis whose walls I never left, for the command of Ochus was
obeyed and whatever happened to those of other gods, the shrine of
Isis was left inviolate. Here, then, surrounded by a dwindling company
of priests and priestesses, I remained, as Noot, my Master, had
commanded me to do, awaiting a word that never came, and carrying on
the ceremonies of the temple in such humble fashion as our poverty
allowed.
What did I through all that slow and heavy time? I dreamed, I communed
with Heaven above, I studied the ancient lore of Egypt and of other
lands, growing ever wiser and full of knowledge as a new-filled jar
with perfume or with wine. Yet of what use was this knowledge to me?
As it seemed, of none. Yet it was not so, since my heart fed on it
like a bee upon its winter store of honey, and without it I should
have died, as the bee must die. Moreover, now I understand that this
space of waiting was a preparation for those long centuries which
afterward I was doomed to pass in the tombs of Kor. It was a training
and a discipline of the soul.
Thus forgotten of the world I brooded and endured, I who had thought
to rule the world.
So moon added itself to moon, and, still filled with a divine
patience, I abode within those temple walls till the appointed hour,
which I knew would dawn at last. Of Nectanebes I heard nothing; he had
vanished away--I doubted not to the doom which I had foreseen. Of
Amenartas, his daughter, I heard nothing, she also had vanished away,
as I supposed with him. Of Kallikrates, the soldier priest, I heard
nothing. Doubtless he was dead and that beauty of his had turned to
evil-odoured dust as my own must do, a thought from which I shrank.
Much I wondered why this man alone upon the earth should have stirred
my soul and awakened the longings of my woman's flesh. I knew not,
unless it was agreed that when the gates were passed I should meet him
in a world that lies beyond, if such there were. For from the
beginning I was sure that it had been laid upon me to lift up his
spirit to the level of my own, perchance because in some far-off star
or state I had sinned against it and him and dragged them down.
Indeed is not this the common lot of the great, that with toil and
tears and bitter disappointment they must strive to draw the spirits
of others to that high peak upon which themselves they stand? And
amongst all the sins of our vile condition, is there one blacker than
to cast back some soul that struggles toward the pure and good into
the seething depths of ill?
Thus in those days I thought of that lost Kallikrates, whose lips
alone had touched my own. I thought, too, with a sad wonderment, how
strange it was that I to whose feet men had crept by scores, I the
most beautiful of women and the most learned, had been rejected, or at
the least turned from by this man, the favourer of another, who
although she was fair and bold of heart, still shone with a smaller
light, as does the pale moon when compared with the glory of the sun.
Indeed, now that all was over and done, as I believed, and that nought
remained of these fires of folly save a pinch of burnt-out ash, I
smiled to myself as I remembered them. Yet to tell truth, I smiled
sadly, who here alone at the dear feast of love which, to a woman,
means more than all other feasts, had been served with the cups of
defeat and shame by the grinning varlet, Destiny. Yet I was well
served, for what had I, Wisdom's Daughter, the vowed to eternal glory,
to do with such matters of our common flesh?
Oh! I was glad to have done with the gray-eyed Kallikrates, who could
wield a sword so manly-well in battle, and yet, when remorse took hold
of him, could pray with the best of priests. Now at least once more I
was the mistress of my own soul with leisure to shape it to the
likeness of the gods and, in those days of holy contemplation, truly
its wings beat against their bars, struggling to be free. Would that
they had burst them, but Fate had built that cage too strong.
At length news came to me, for Isis still had eyes and ears in Egypt
and all that these saw or heard I learned, news that Ochus, grown
timid or weary in his Persian palace, had determined once more to
drink the waters of the Nile, or perchance to check the accounts of
his satrap Sabaco whose sum of tribute had fallen off of late.
So he came with all his Eastern pomp and at last took up his abode in
the palace of Memphis within two bowshots of the temple where I dwelt.
The people received him with rejoicings; it was pitiful to see them
decking themselves and the streets with flowers, spreading branches of
palm for him to tread on, and flying banners from the lofty tops of
the fire-scorched pylons--slaves welcoming their torturer and tyrant
and grinning to hide the terror in their hearts. He came, and there
was festival throughout the great town as though Osiris had returned
to earth, accompanied by all the lesser gods.
Only in the temple of Isis there was none. No palm leaves decked its
stark and ancient walls, no bonfires burned within its courts, and no
lanterns hung in its window-places. Not thus would I, Ayesha, bow the
knee to Baal or sacrifice to Moloch, though it is true that some of my
servants looked askance when I forbade it and asked who would protect
us from the wrath of the King of kings because of this neglect of his
command.
"The goddess will protect us," I answered, "or if she does not, I
will," and sent them to their tasks.
On the second night after the coming of Ochus, Bagoas waited on me and
I commanded that he should enter, but alone. So his Eastern rabble of
gorgeous servitors was turned back from the gates and he came in
unattended, splendid in gold-embroidered silk and jewels. Where he had
left me, there I received him, seated veiled in the chair of state
before the alabaster statue of the goddess, at the entrance to the
outer sanctuary that overlooked the great hall.
"Hail! Bagoas," I said, "how goes it with you? Has that amulet of
power which I gave to you protected you from harm?"
"Prophetess," he answered, bowing, "it has protected me. It has lifted
me up so that now, save for the King of kings, my master most august,"
he added with a sneer in every word, "I am now the greatest one in the
whole world. I give life, I decree death. I lift up, I cast down;
satraps and councillors crawl about my feet; generals beg my favour;
gold is showered upon me. Yea, I might build my house of gold. There
is nought left for me to desire beneath the sun."
"Except certain things to which, thanks to the cruelty of the King of
kings, or those who went before him, you cannot attain? For example,
children to inherit all this glory and all this gold, Bagoas, although
you live among so many of those who might be mothers."
He heard, and his face, that I noted had grown thinner and more fierce
since last I saw him, became like to that of the devil.
"Prophetess," he hissed, "surely you are one who knows how to pour
acid into an open wound."
"That thereby it may be cleansed, Bagoas."
"Yet your words are true," he went on, unheeding. "All this splendour,
all this wealth and power I would give, and gladly, to be as my
fathers were before me, gently bred but humble owners of a patch of
land between Thebes and Philae. There they sat for a score of
generations with their women and their children. But where, thanks to
the Persians, are /my/ woman and /my/ children? In the western cliff
yonder there is a sepulchre. In the chapel of that sepulchre above the
coffins of those who lie beneath is an image of him who dug it. He
lived some fourteen hundred years ago in the days of Aahmes, he who
won back Egypt from the Hyksos kings, the invaders who held it as the
Persians do to-day. For he was one of the captains of the troops of
Aahmes who, when he conquered, gave him that patch of land in guerdon
for his service."
Here Bagoas paused like to one overwhelmed by unhappy memories, then
continued,
"From age to age, Prophetess, it has been the custom for the children
of the children of this soldier upon a certain day to make offerings
to that statue, wherein, as we hold, dwells the /Ka/ of him whose face
and form it pictures; to set a golden crown, that of Osiris, upon its
head, to wind a golden chain about its neck; to give it food, to give
it flowers. Such is the sacred duty, from generation to generation, of
the descendants of that captain who served Aahmes and helped to free
Egypt from the barbarian foe. Myself I have fulfilled that duty, aye,
when Ochus the Destroyer first came to Memphis, I travelled up Nile
and placed the crown upon the head and wound the chain about the neck,
and offered the flowers and the food. But, Prophetess, of this blood I
am the last, for because of my beauty as a child the Persian seized me
and made of me a dry tree, so that never again will there be one to
make offering in the tomb of my forefather, the captain of Aahmes, or
to read the story of his deeds that fourteen hundred years ago, while
yet living, he caused to be recorded upon his funeral tablet."
I heard and laughed.
"A common tale," I said, "a very common tale in Egypt to-day, the
Egypt of the Persians, as doubtless it was long ago in the Egypt of
the Hyksos. But this ancestor of yours was a man who smote, or helped
to smite, the Hyksos and lived to write his glorious deeds on stone to
be an example to those who came after him. Well, the story is
finished, is it not? Indeed I wonder that the glorious Bagoas, slave
of the Persian, Bagoas with his pomp and pleasures, thinks fit to
waste time upon the tale of a forgotten warrior who in his hour struck
for freedom. What are the flowers and the humble scents which for more
than a thousand years have been offered to the spirit of that warrior,
but now can never be offered again since there are none of his blood
left to bring them, compared to the priceless balms, the jewels and
the gold, that daily are poured upon the feet of Bagoas, the Chief
Eunuch and Counsellor of the King of kings, who, did he know of those
holy ones that sleep in the tomb of the race of Bagoas, doubtless
would drag them out and cause Bagoas, the last of its blood, to fire
them, that he might see a merry blaze? That would be a good sport for
the King of kings, to force the great Bagoas to burn his ancestors and
on their bones to cook a royal meal, as he forced the priests of Ptah
to broil Apis for his feast."
The mighty Bagoas heard and understood me, as I could see well, for at
every word he winced like a high-bred steed beneath the whip.
"Cease," he said hoarsely, "cease! I can bear no more. Why do you rub
sand into my eyes, Prophetess?"
"To clear away their rheum that they may see the better, Bagoas. But
let us be done with the tale of that honourable, long-lost ancestor of
yours to whose spirit no more offerings will be made, and tell me of
the wonders of the great estate of you in whom runs his blood, the
last drops of it, that soon will be sucked up in the sands of Death.
Seal that sepulchre, Bagoas, but first set it in another writing,
graven on a tablet of emerald or gold, telling how he who hallowed it
was by the gods given the glory of being the far forefather of Bagoas,
Chief Eunuch of the King of kings, Ochus, who burned the shrines of
that forefather's gods."
"Cease, cease!" he moaned. "The hour is at hand."
"What hour, Bagoas?"
"The hour of vengeance which I swore to Isis."
"Does the Egyptian worshipper of the Persian holy Fire remember his
vows to Isis? Be plain, Bagoas."
"Hearken, Prophetess. During all these years I have been seeking
opportunity. Now of a sudden I see it to my hand. A thought came to me
whilst you talked of the captain of Aahmes to whom no more of his
blood can make offerings."
"Speak it, then, Bagoas."
"Prophetess, the King of kings is wrath with you, because alone of all
the great places in Memphis, on the temple of Isis no welcoming
banners hang to greet him at his royal coming and because no priest or
priestess of Isis spread flowers before his conquering feet. So wrath
is he that, were it not for his oath, which he fears to break, he
would pull this sanctuary stone from stone, slaughter its priests, and
give its priestesses to the soldiers."
"Is it so?" I asked indifferently.
"Aye, Prophetess. But by that oath you are saved, for ever I keep it
before his mind and warn him of the fate of those who do violence to
the Queen of Heaven. Only this morning I did this while he stood
staring at these unbannered walls and muttered vengeance."
"And what said he then, Bagoas?"
"He laughed and answered that he would do the goddess not violence,
but honour, thus. On the third night from this, the night of full
moon, he will make a great feast in the inner court of this temple. At
that feast the King of kings and his women will sit upon a platform
laid over the coffins of the royalties of Egypt dragged from their
sepulchres, so that its kings and queens may be beneath his feet. This
platform will be supported by the statues of the gods of Egypt which
once they worshipped. In front of it will burn the holy Fire of Persia
and that fire will be fed with the mortal remnants of priests and
priestesses of these Egyptian gods. Ochus the king will be clad in the
robes of Osiris, and at the end of the feast from behind her
consecrated statue, that before which we sit, the goddess herself,
dressed in the robes of Isis and wearing the holy emblems upon her
head, will appear veiled, led by priestesses or by royal Persian
women. /You/ will be that goddess, Prophetess."
"And then?" I asked.
"Then you will be brought up on to the platform and there this new
Osiris will unveil you, embracing you as his wife in welcome before
all that company. This he will do to make a mock of you because he
believes you to be an ancient woman who goes veiled to hide her
baldness and her wrinkles, for so the rumour runs among the Persians."
Now when I, Ayesha, heard these terrible words and my heart understood
the height and depth of the sacrilege which this mad king would dare
and all that it might mean to me, I trembled; yes, the bones seemed to
melt within me so that almost I fell from the throne whereon I sat.
Yet gathering up my strength I asked,
"Is this all, Bagoas?"
"Nay. At that feast, Prophetess, I myself as Vizier and the head of
the world under him, must serve Ochus as his cup-bearer. While the
priests of Osiris and the priestesses of Isis sing the ancient chants
of the awakening of Osiris from the tomb and of his reunion with Isis
the Wife Divine, it will be my part to hand the jewelled goblet filled
with the holy wine to Osiris-Ochus, King of Heaven and Earth. From it
he will drink the marriage-draught, and having drunk, will pour the
dregs of the goblet upon your feet, or for aught I know will cast them
in your face. Nay, I forgot. First the Persian women of the royal
household will strip the coverings from you that Osiris may see his
long-lost bride and the company may have sport, jeering at her
withered age."
"And if she should prove to remain unwithered, if even she should
chance to be passing fair, what then, Bagoas?"
"Then perchance, Prophetess, it is in the mind of Ochus to add Isis to
the number of his queens, thinking thus to gain the favour of the
Egyptians, if not of their gods. Oh! Prophetess, you are very wise, as
all know, yet once your foot slipped--or rather your hand slipped,
when in bygone days you stretched it out to touch the sceptre of the
King of kings. Ochus has often spoken of the beauty of that hand and
arm, and of how, more than all things, he desired to see the face
above them and the form of which they are a part. Perchance,
Prophetess, that is why he plans all this mummery."
"And if I refuse to act this play, what then, Bagoas?"
"Then since the command is lawful and designed to honour the goddess,
the Great King's oath is at an end. Then the temple of Isis will be
sacked and burned like others, then her priests will be murdered
unless they make offerings to the holy Fire, and her priestesses be
enslaved or find a home in the soldiers' tents or Persian households."
"Bagoas," I said, rising and standing over him, "know that the Curse
of Isis hovers about your head. Show me a path out of this trouble or
you die--not to-morrow or next year, but at once. How, it matters not,
still you die; and for the rest, are the Sidonians the only ones who
can fire their temples and perish in them?"
He cringed before me after the fashion of his unhappy kind, then
answered,
"I waited for such words, Prophetess, and had I not been prepared
against them, never would I have entered these gates alone. Did I not
tell you that at this feast I shall be the King's cup-bearer? Now," he
went on in a whisper, "I add that his own physician, who is in my pay,
will mix the marriage wine, that his life is in the hollow of my hand;
that the guards and captains are my servants; that the great lords are
sworn to me, and that the hour for which I have waited through long
years has come at last. Lady, you are not the only one who desires
vengeance upon Ochus."
"Fine words," I said. "But how know I that they will be fulfilled? In
Egypt Bagoas is called the King's Liar."
"I swear it by Isis, and if I fail you, may the Devourer take my
soul."
"And I, who am her Mouth and Oracle, swear by Isis that if you fail me
I will take your blood. Aye, though I die, a thousand will live on to
avenge me, and the dagger or the shaft of one of them shall reach your
heart at last. Or if they miss their aim then the goddess herself will
smite."
"I know it, Prophetess, and I will not fail. After drinking of that
cup sleep will fall upon the King of kings; yes, the new Osiris will
return to his tomb and sleep sound, but /not in the arms of Isis/."
Then for a while there was silence between us, till at length I
motioned to him to begone.
The night of the feast came and all was prepared. I did not trust
Bagoas and therefore I made a plan, a splendid and terrible plan. I
determined to offer all those feasters, yes, the King of kings with
his women, his generals, his chamberlains, his councillors, and his
company, as one vast sacrifice to the outraged gods of Egypt, and with
them if need were, myself and my servants, to guide them upon the road
to hell.
Beneath that hall of the temple which Ochus had appointed for the
feast was a vast vault for the storage of oil and fuel against times
of want or tumult. This vault, as it chanced, was full to the roof,
since in those troublous days I never knew from moon to moon when the
place might be besieged. Also in it was much prepared papyrus with
many written rolls that for centuries had been hidden there, great
weight of bitumen such as the embalmers use, a stack of coffins
prepared by the living to receive their bodies at the end; and lastly
hundreds of bundles of dried reeds that served to strew the courts.
What more was needed, save to open the air shafts to the hall above
that the flames might find full play, and to set in the vault one who
could be trusted with a lamp of which the light was hidden, commanded
at a certain signal to cast it among the oil-soaked reeds and fly?
As it chanced such an instrument was to my hand, an old, fierce-
hearted woman in whom ran royal blood, for that hard on seventy years
had served as priestess of this temple.
That very night I summoned the priests and priestesses who remained
and in the sanctuary under the wings of Isis, I told them all: told
them how I purposed to sweep this human dirt of Persians with the red
bosom of destruction out of the company of the living over the edge of
the world into the Avenger's everlasting jaws.
This band of the faithful hearkened and bowed their cowled heads. Then
the first of them, an old priest, asked,
"Is it decreed that we must eat fire with these swine? If so, we are
ready."
"Nay," I answered, "the secret passage that runs from the back of the
sanctuary of the ruined temple of Osiris will be unbarred, that
passage by which in the old days the holy effigy of Osiris was brought
at the great festival of the Resurrection to be laid upon the breast
of Isis. By this passage at the first sign of fire, you must flee, as
I will if I may. But if I come not you will know that the goddess has
called me. At the water-steps of the temple of Osiris boats will be
waiting manned by brothers of our faith. In the darkness and the
tumult, those boats will pass down Nile to the secret shrine that is
called /Isis-among-the-Reeds/, where once, the legend tells, the
goddess found the heart of Osiris hidden there by Typhon, the shrine
upon the isle that none dare visit, no, not even the Persians, because
it is guarded by the ghosts of the dead, or by spirits sent from the
Under-world fashioned like flames of fire. Thither fly, and there lie
hid until the word of Isis comes to you, as come it will."
Again they bowed their cowled heads in the gloomy sanctuary lit by a
single lamp. Then the old priest said,
"Great is the deed that we shall do, and worthy. Surely the song of it
shall echo through all the courts of Heaven and the gods themselves
shall crown our brows with splendour. Yet ere it is decreed, O
Prophetess inspired, let us seek a sign from the Queen immortal that
such is her command."
"Aye," I answered, "let us seek a sign."
So there in the half darkness we chanted the mystic ritual, hand in
hand before the goddess we chanted it, bowing and swaying, weeping and
praying, demanding that a sign be given to us who were prepared to die
that her splendour might shone forth as a star.
Yet no sign came.
"O Oracle inspired," said the old priest, "it is not enough. Yet in
your heart are locked the unutterable Words, the Words of Power, the
Words of the Opening of the Mouth Divine, that may not be spoken save
at the last extreme. Are not these words known to you, the Oracle
inspired?"
"They are known to me," I answered. "From Noot I had them under the
Seven Oaths when I was ordained prophetess; yea, under the Seven
Curses if those words should be used unworthily, the seven dreadful
curses, deer-footed, snake-headed, lion-maned with red fire, that
shall hunt the betrayer's soul from star to star, till the black vault
of space falls in and buries Time. Kneel now and bow your heads and
stop your ears till they be spoken. Then open your ears and hearken."
They knelt in a double row and I, I the Oracle, clothed in the might
of my Queen, I dared to draw near to her holy effigy gleaming white
above us in the darkness of the shrine. Yes, this I dared, not knowing
what would chance. I took the jewelled /sistrum/ of my office; I laid
it upon the lips of the goddess, I shook it till it chimed before her
face, I clasped her feet and kissed them.
Then I rose and into her ear I whispered the dreadful Words of Power,
which even now, after so many ages, I dare not so much as shape in the
halls of memory. I whispered them and returning to my company of
kneeling worshippers, I motioned to them to unstop their ears and
folding my arms upon my breast, I waited with downcast eyes.
Presently there was a stir in the sanctuary as of bearing wings; a
cold air blew upon us; then a voice spoke, the very voice of Noot my
Master, Noot, the holy priest of priests. Said the voice:
"/Fulfil! It is decreed. Fulfil and fear not!/"
"Ye have heard," I said.
"We have heard," they answered.
"Whose voice did ye hear?" I asked.
"The voice of Noot, the holy priest of priests who has gone from us,"
they answered.
"Is it enough?" I asked.
"It is enough," they answered.
Then I departed rejoicing, who knew by this sign that Noot, who spoke
with his human voice, still lived upon the earth, and that through him
it had pleased Heaven to utter its decree.
CHAPTER XVI
THE FEAST OF THE KING OF KINGS
It was the night of the great feast. All day long artificers by scores
had toiled in the court of the temple. Adown its length tables had
been set up and by them couches and benches upon which hundreds of the
feasters would lie or sit according to their degree. Near to the head
of the court a platform had been built, of which the foundation beams
were supported by the statues of gods dragged from a score of temples
where they had stood in solemn peace for ages. Yes, there were Ptah,
Ammon, Osiris, Mut, Khonsu, Hathor, Maat, Thoth, Ra, Horus, and the
rest, bearing on their sacred brows and headdresses the eating-table
of a heathen horde. But they bore more than this, since around and
between them and the platform upon which stood this table were laid
the coffins of long-dead kings or queens, and other great ones, torn,
it was said, from the pyramids or their surrounding tombs. Dark with
the dust of ages there they lay, some of them uncovered, so as to
reveal the grim shapes that slept within.
Above these again was placed the wide platform carpeted with purple
cloth of Tyre, and on it stood the board and gilded furniture of the
feast. Here, too, was a golden throne at the back of which was a
peacock fan of jewels, while to its front was set a table fashioned of
black wood inlaid with ivory, and around it other smaller thrones and
tables. These were the seats of the King of kings and some of his
favoured women.
Nor was this all, for in an outer court but within the pylon gates,
cooks and scullions had built fires whereon they dressed meats, and
butlers set out their store of wines. Never before within the memory
of man had so strange and rich a feast been seen in Egypt as that
which was now preparing in the courts of Isis, to defile which with
the smell of flesh was a sacrilege and the eating of it there an
abomination.
When the sun had turned toward the west came Bagoas with other eunuchs
and chamberlains, and being admitted to the inner courts, summoned our
company and issued his commands as to the ceremonial that we must
keep. We hearkened meekly, saying that we were the slaves of the King
of kings, we and our goddess together, and in all things would obey
his words.
Then they went away, but as he passed me, affecting to stumble, he
whispered in my ear,
"Be not afraid, Prophetess. All is well and the end shall be good."
"I am not afraid, Eunuch," I answered, "who know that all is well and
that the end will be good."
The night fell; great flares of light set upon stands of bronze were
lit adown the hall, and with them countless lamps placed at intervals
along the tables. The feasters gathered; they came by scores and
hundreds; Persian lords in their rich robes, generals and captains in
their armour, merchants of many lands, Egyptian apostates, and I know
not who besides, men, all of them, whom it pleased the King of kings
to honour. They were marshalled in their appointed places by the
stewards and butlers, and there waited in silence, or speaking only in
low voices.
From behind the curtains of the outer sanctuary I and my company
watched it all. These were clad in their festal garments of white,
garlanded with flowers. But I, according to command, wore the glorious
robes of Isis beneath my veil, and on my head the vulture cap of Isis,
the golden Uraeus, the earrings and the crescent of the moon. Moreover,
about my bosom were hung the sacred necklaces and the other jewelled
emblems of the goddess, while in my hands I held the /sistrum/ and the
Cross of Life.
Trumpets blew announcing the advent of the King of kings. Up the long
hall he marched, clad in the mummy wrappings of Osiris, somewhat
widened at the feet so that he might walk in them, wearing on his head
the tall feathered crown and holding in his hands the Crook of
Dominion and the Scourge of Rule. His chamberlains and great officials
led him by a stairway to the platform that was built above the bodies
of ancient kings, where was set a tiny altar upon which burned the
Holy Persian Fire. There for a while he stood in pride, waving the
scourge with which he flogged the world, while all that company fell
upon their faces and adored him as a god, after which they lay still
as corpses in the grave.
It was strange to see them lying on their faces like dead men, who
indeed soon were to be dead, every one of them, and adoring this human
image, this dressed-up doll, fashioned in their own likeness, to be
the plaything of the gods and about to be broken by them and cast upon
the rubbish heap of time.
I, Ayesha, watching through the veil and alive with that spirit which
in the hour of great events comes to such as I am, thought it very
strange; so strange that I could have laughed. For there in this mime,
this puppet king upon the platform, with the tame tiger, Bagoas, that
was about to tear out his throat, crouching at his feet, I saw the
very type of all grandeur that is built of clay and not of spirit,
since assuredly there is one grandeur of the earth and another of the
spirit. Whether by the poison of Bagoas or by the fire of Isis, yonder
man who stood triumphing over the mighty monarchs that lay coffined
beneath his feet, like a wind-filled toad upon a consecrated altar,
was about to die and then what of his triumph and what of his pomp?
His cup of blood was full, and when the blast of doom overturned it
into the sands of Death, what tongues would it take, I wondered, in
which to urge a million trembling accusations against his trembling
soul? Lastly, what mocking devil had persuaded him to don the robes of
Osiris, that in them he might do insult to Isis who, whate'er she may
not be, at least under her royal name of Nature is the mighty vassal
of the Most High, forgetting that Osiris is the god of Death and that
Isis-Nature ever avenges herself upon those who violate her laws?
Little wonder then that I who laughed but seldom in those days did so
in my heart, while my eyes took their fill of the tinselled panoply of
this lost madman.
Ochus-Osiris waved his sceptre, and the seeming dead who lay around
him, as they had been drilled to do by those who planned this play,
came to life in a grim mockery of ghosts called from the grave. They
rose up and each, according to his degree, took his place at this
Table of Osiris brought to earth.
The feast went on; they ate much; they drank more, till their brains
were bemused with wine and scarce could they stand upon their feet. At
length the climax came; the coping-stone was set upon this black
pyramid of mortal sin against the spirit of Divinity.
Ochus rose, waving the Crook of Dominion.
"Osiris is risen again in Egypt!" he cried. "Let his wife, the divine
Isis, be brought forth that he may drink with her the cup of marriage
and embrace her as her husband."
Thereon that ribald company shouted,
"Yea, the god Osiris is risen again in Egypt. Bring out Queen Isis.
Bring her out, that we may see her drink with him and be kissed!"
Guards summoned us. We came forth from the curtained sanctuary, white-
robed in simple state. Singing the ancient hymn of Reunion to the
music of harps and of shaken /sistra/, our company came forth into the
great hall, I at the head of them. We walked into the hall, a solemn
troop at whom the drunken feasters forgot to mock; indeed some of them
bowed their heads as though in awe. We came to the dais that was
supported by the statues of the gods of Egypt and platformed with her
ancient royalties, and here we halted. Guards led me up a stairway so
that I stood upon the platform, facing Ochus-Osiris. He spoke, saying,
mockingly,
"Hail! Queen of Heaven. Behold Osiris re-arisen on the Nile has found
you at last. Unveil, Queen of Heaven, that he may look upon your
glory, for as goddesses do not grow old, doubtless you are glorious."
At these words of insult the company broke into coarse laughter. I
waited till it had died away, then answered,
"O King wrapped in the robes of a greater king, yea, in the robes of
Death, have you not heard that it is very dangerous to draw the veil
of Isis, that none, indeed, has drawn it and lived? You think me but a
woman, but know that here in the shrine of Isis, aye, here in her holy
House which you desecrate with revellings and with the flesh of
butchered beasts, I, her Prophetess and Oracle, am the very goddess
and clothed with her divinity. I pray you, therefore, think again ere
you bid me to draw my veil."
For a moment he seemed to grow afraid, as did that company, for they
were silent. Then rage took hold of him who was full of wine and
pride.
"What?" he shouted. "Am I, the King of the world, to be defied and
threatened by an old hag who calls herself a priestess, or a goddess,
or both? Woman, once before I listened to your prayer and left you
wrapped in that rag, but now when I come both as your king and as your
god, why I claim the privilege of the god. Off with that veil or I
will bid my women strip you stark."
Again the silence fell, and for a little while I looked about me. I
looked at the feasters illumined by the strong flares of the essence
of bitumen; I looked at the blue heaven above in which the great moon
floated royally; I turned and looked at the white statue of the
goddess showing faint and pure between the curtains in the darkness of
the distant shrine beyond. Then I lifted my head and prayed aloud,
saying,
"O Thou, that from thy moon-throne watchest all things passing on the
earth, O Thou, great Spirit of the world whom men name Isis, Thou that
canst spare; Thou that canst avenge; Thou that knowest both life and
death; Thou that rulest hearts and destinies; Thou to whose equal
sight the king is as the slave, since both kings and slaves are but
dust beneath thine immortal feet, hear me, thy priestess and thine
Oracle. Thou knowest my strait and that of these thy servants over
whom I rule beneath thee. Protect me and them, if thou wilt, or if
thou wilt not, then take us to thyself. I ask nothing of thee; I seek
not to turn the chariot wheels of Fate; judge thou of my cause who
with thy judgment am content. In thine hands hang the scales of doom
and the great worlds are thy weights. Who then am I that I should seek
to press upon thy balances? Judge now between me, O Mother Isis, and
this death-attired king who mocks thee, the Queen of Heaven, in
mocking me, thy servitor on earth."
"Have done, woman!" mocked Ochus. "Cease your whimperings to a goddess
sitting in the moon, for she is far away from you--and unveil. Bagoas,
give me the Marriage Cup, that I may drink to this new wife of mine
who thinks herself divine."
Bagoas beckoned and a dark-faced, black-bearded man whom I knew for
the king's physician came forward with a golden goblet on which were
vile carvings of the loves of satyrs. This he tasted, or effected to
taste, with much ceremony, and as he did so, though save I none noted
it, let fall the poison into the wine. Then with humble steps, lifting
the cup thrice, lowering it again thrice, doubtless to mix the venom
with the wine, he came to the Presence and kneeling, presented the
goblet to his master, the King of kings, the King of the world.
"Now," said the drink-besotted Ochus as he grasped the goblet, "now,
Priestess, will you unveil or must I call the women?"
"It is not needful," I answered. "Yet, O most glorious monarch, yet, O
conqueror of all things, first I would add one word. Even a king so
great that he dares to clothe himself in the raiment of the Lord of
Death perchance may err from time to time. Thus, Mighty One, do you
err when you say that Isis is far from me, for Isis is here and /I am
Isis/."
Then at a word two priestesses sprang to my side and loosed me of my
veil. It fell to the ground and there I stood before them clad in all
the splendid pomp of Isis, beautiful as Isis, with the terrible eyes
of Isis, and holding in my hands the emblems of Isis and the sceptre
with which Isis ruled the world.
They saw, and from that crowded hall there went up a sigh of wonder--
or was it of fear? Ochus saw also; his eyes started, his mouth opened.
"By the holy Fire!" he muttered, "here is one worth wedding, be she
goddess or woman."
"Then drink the cup, O Ochus-Osiris, and take her, be she goddess or
woman," I answered, pointing at him with the Cross of Life.
He drank, he drank deep, and forgetting to offer the wine to me,
loosed the goblet from his hand so that it fell upon the little altar
where burned the holy Fire, extinguishing it, and thence rolled from
the platform to the ground. I glanced at Bagoas and read in his eyes
such a look as I had never seen upon the face of man. Oh! it was
cruel, that look--cruel yet triumphant, this cold stare of the victim
who had become a conqueror. All hell was in that look.
The feasters murmured at the omen of the death of the Fire, but that
draught seemed to sober Ochus, who took no heed of it. The wildness
left his eyes; they grew cunning as those of a merchant. Merchant-like
he appraised my loveliness seen through the gauzy wrappings such as
are used to deck the painted effigy of the goddess.
"I look before I take," he said. "'Twas good to win Egypt; it will be
better to win you, O Divine in flesh if not in spirit. Now I
understand why in the past you would not suffer me to draw your veil."
Thus he spoke slowly, savouring the words upon his tongue as his
greedy eyes savoured my beauty. Then he rose to pass the small altar
and advance upon me.
In that fierce moment of time I considered all. It came into my mind
that Bagoas had tricked me; that his cup lacked poison, or at least
that the plan had failed, and that if I was to be saved it must be by
myself. Yet I paused ere I did that which would cause the death of
hundreds.
"Stay!" I said to him. "Lay no finger on me lest you shall call the
curse of Isis upon your head."
"Nay," he answered, "it is the blessing of Isis that I am about to
call upon my lips, O most Beautiful, O Loveliness incarnate!"
He came on. He was past the marble altar. His fierce, bestial face
glared into mine and he gripped me; his hot arm was about me, he
dragged me to his embrace, while all the beasts of his company shouted
in vile joy.
I let fall the /sistrum/ that I held. The moment of mercy had gone by.
That shout had sealed the doom of all those dogs and satyrs. It was
the signal!
By the arts known to us instantly the command was passed on to her who
waited below. Instantly this fierce-souled destroyer was at her work
with lamp and torch. Never did lover run so swiftly to her lover's
side as she did from pile to pile, firing the oil, firing the reeds.
Now that brute-king had me! He pressed his hot kisses upon my breast,
upon my lips. I stood still. I struggled not. I stood like the statue
of the goddess. This cold calm of mine seemed to frighten him.
"Are you woman?" he asked, hesitating.
"Nay," I hissed back, "I am Isis. Woe to them who lay hands upon
Isis!"
He unloosed. He stood staring at me, and as he stared I saw his face
change.
"What is in your eyes?" he asked. "All the devils in Egypt are looking
out of your eyes."
"Nay," I answered, "all the devils of hell look out of my eyes. Isis
commands the devils of hell and unchains them, O death-clothed king."
"What do you mean? What do you mean?" he asked.
"That you will learn presently--in hell. Therefore bid farewell to the
world, O Corpse of a king!"
He glowered at me. He swayed to and fro. Then suddenly down he went
like one pierced through the heart with an arrow. There he lay upon
his back across the altar staring up at the moon.
"Isis is in the moon!" he cried. "She threatens me from the moon.
Persians, be afraid of Isis the Moon-dweller. Bagoas! Physician!
Physician! Bagoas! protect me from Isis. She is wringing my heart with
her hands. Witch! Witch! loose my heart from your hands."
Thus he wailed in a horrible voice and these were his last words, for
having spoken them he lifted his head, glaring about him with a
twisted mouth, then let it fall heavily, rolled to the platform, and
was still.
Bagoas and the physician ran to him.
"The Curse of Isis has fallen upon the King of kings," cried Bagoas.
"He who bestrode the world is dead, smitten by Isis of the Egyptians!"
cried the physician.
From the royal women and all that company there went up a wail of:
"Ochus is dead! Artaxerxes is dead! The King of kings is dead!"
Bagoas and the physician, helped by the wailing women of Ochus, lifted
the body. They carried it from the platform, they bore it down the
hall, they vanished with it into the darkness, and presently in the
utter silence I heard the gates of the courts and the outer gates of
the pylon clang behind them and the clashing of the bolts as they were
shot by the guards of the gates.
Still for awhile the silence held, for all were like dead men with
terror. Then a voice cried,
"The witch has killed the king with her kiss! Slay her. Tear her to
pieces. Slay her and her company!"
The spell-bound mob began to stir; I heard swords rattling in their
scabbards. They rose like waves on a quiet sea, and like a wave began
to flow toward the platform on which I now stood alone. I stooped
down, lifted the /sistrum/ from the platform, and held it toward them.
"Be warned!" I cried. "Stay still lest the Curse of Isis fall on you
also."
"Witch! Witch! Witch!" they screamed, hesitating awhile, and again
swayed forward.
I waved my arm, and as though in answer to it from the grating of
stone beyond the platform suddenly arose dense smoke followed by
bursts of flame. I waved it a second time, and from the gratings at
the end of the hall arose smoke followed by bursts of flame. They
looked, they saw, they understood.
"The Curse of Isis!" they screamed. "The Curse of Isis is upon us!
Fire rises from hell."
"Nay," I answered, "fire falls from Heaven sent by the outraged gods!"
Now between me and them flared a fence of flame which the boldest
dared not face. They paused, one hurled a sword at me which passed
above my head. Then they turned, flying for the gateways of the hall,
and there were met by another fence of flame. Some of the boldest
leapt through it only to find that the gates were shut and that the
terror-stricken guards had fled. They rushed back, burning, yea, their
silken robes and their oil-anointed hair turned them, yet living, into
torches. Now they took another counsel. They dragged the tables
together, piling them each on each and striving thus to climb the
walls of the hall. This, perhaps, they might have done, some of them,
had not every man pulled down his neighbour, so that they fell in
tumbled heaps upon the stone flooring where the life was trampled out
of them.
I turned and behind the veil of smoke fled from the platform, none
seeing me, back behind the hangings that hid the outer sanctuary,
where all the company of Isis was gathered, save only that fierce old
priestess who yet with lamp and torch lit fire upon fire in the vaults
beneath and, at last, doubtless, passed to Heaven on the chariot
wheels of flame.
Here my servants stripped off my sacred trappings, wrapping me in dark
garments and a hooded cloak. While they did so I looked back. The hall
was filled with spouts of fire. The platform upon which Ochus had
feasted was burning and the royal dead beneath blazed merrily. Only
the stone gods by whom it was upborne still stared silent and dreadful
through the vesture of smoke and fire, emblems of vengeance and
eternal doom.
I could see no more but above the roaring flames I heard the mad
screams of those trapped feasters who had come to see their king make
a mock of Isis and her priestess, and these were terrible to hear.
Then the floor gave way and down they went into the furnace pit
beneath. Yes, they who worshipped fire were devoured of their own god.
Thus did I, Ayesha, Child-of-Wisdom, daughter of Yarab according to
the flesh, work the vengeance of Heaven upon the Persians and their
King of kings. By fire I wrought it, I whose path ever was and ever
shall be marked by fire; I, Ayesha, who grew undying in the breath of
fire and who, in the caverns of Kor, clasped it to my breast and was
wedded to its secret Soul.
CHAPTER XVII
THE FLIGHT AND THE SUMMONS
We gained the hidden passage, bearing with us the treasures and the
holy books of the Sanctuary that to this day lie buried in the caves
of Kor. We came safely to the ruined temple of Osiris that the
Persians had destroyed, and through it to the water-gate where the
boats waited. None noting us, we embarked upon the boats, and glided
away down Nile. If any saw us pass, they thought us country-folk, or
perchance Egyptians who fled from the Persians in Memphis. But I think
that none did see us, since all eyes were bent upon the flaming temple
of Isis and all ears were filled with the rumours that fled from mouth
to mouth, telling that the goddess had descended in fire and made an
end of the tyrant Ochus, his generals, his councillors, and his court.
Thus did I bid farewell to white-walled Memphis which never again my
eyes should see, though often my spirit shows it to me in visions of
the night, and often I seem to hear the last wild agony of those upon
whom I executed the decree of Heaven.
What happened afterward? Of that I know little, though rumours which
Philo brought in the later years told me that Bagoas and the physician
let fall or flung away the corpse of Ochus. These rumours said that it
was found devoured by cats and jackals, so that had it not been for
the rent Osiris wrappings, none would have known that here lay all
that was left of the King of kings who desolated Egypt and made her a
widow. They told also that Bagoas set Arses, the son of Ochus, upon
the throne of Persia, and later poisoned him and all his children save
one. Then it seems that he made Darius king, and this Darius
Codamannus, knowing that Bagoas would poison him also, smote the
first, forcing him to drink of the drugged cup that he had given to so
many.
Such, it appears, was the end of Bagoas whom I used as the artist uses
a tool, harnessing him to the chariot of my wrath and, like the
/Erinnyes/ of the Greeks, making of him a sword wherewith I, or Heaven
working through me, stabbed Persia to the heart, as through Tenes I
had stabbed Sidon and through Sidon, Egypt. For such were the dooms
that I was commanded to bring about. Thus Bagoas walked the road down
which, aforetime, he drove his victims, and save for an evil name that
echoes through the ages, this was the end of him and all his crimes.
Ere dawn our company came to the great reed-bed and through it by
channels known only to our pilots, reached the secret shrine named
/Isis-among-the-Reeds/, where all had been made ready for our coming
by the priests who watched there. Worn out, as well I might be, I laid
me down and slept in a tiny cell, fearing no harm, since I knew surely
that none would come to me or to those with me. Why I knew it I cannot
say, but it was so. I knew further that I had done with Egypt; my work
there was finished; henceforth we were divorced.
All that day I slept and through most of the night which followed,
lulled by the whispering of the tall, surrounding reeds. I suppose
that it must have been during those night hours that I dreamed a
strange dream. In it I stood upon the desert, a vast waste of sand
bordered in the distance by the Nile. I was alone in this desert save
for the sun that sank in the west and the moon that rose in the east,
and between them, shone upon by sun and moon, by Ra and by Isis,
crouched a mighty Sphinx of stone with a woman's breasts and head,
which Sphinx I knew was Egypt. There she sat, immemorial, unchanging,
stern, beautiful, and stared with brooding eyes toward the east whence
morn by morn arose the sun.
Appeared before her, one by one, each adorned with its own sacred
emblems, all the gods of Egypt, a grim, fantastic crowd such as a
brain distraught might fashion in its madness. Beast-headed and human-
shaped, human-headed and beast-shaped; dogs and hawks, crocodiles and
owls; swamp-birds, bulls, rams, and swollen-bellied dwarfs, came this
rout of gods and bowed before the stern and beauteous Sphinx that wore
a woman's head.
The Sphinx opened its mouth and spoke.
"What would ye of me who have sheltered you for long?" it asked.
One shaped like a man but from whose shoulders rose the beaked head of
an ibis crowned with a crescent moon on which stood a feather, and
holding in his hand the palette of a scribe; he whom the Egyptians
named Thoth the Measurer, the Recorder, stood forward and made answer.
"We would bid thee farewell, Mother Egypt, our shelterer for thousands
upon thousands of years. Out of thy mud we were created, into thy mud
we return again."
"Is it so?" answered the Sphinx. "Well, what of it? Your short day is
done. Yet tell me, who gave you these monstrous shapes and who named
you gods?"
"The priests gave them to us and the priests named us gods," answered
the ibis-headed man. "Now the priests are slain and we perish with the
priests, because we are but gods made of thy mud, O Egypt."
"Then get you gone back into the mud, ye gods of mud. But first tell
me, where is my Spirit that in the beginning, when the world was
young, I sent forth that it might be a Soul divine to rule Egypt and
the world?"
"We know not," answered Thoth the Recorder. "Ask it of the priests who
made us. Perchance they have hidden it away. Farewell, O Egypt,
farewell, O Sphinx, farewell, farewell!"
"Farewell!" echoed all that monstrous throng and then faded miserably
away.
There was silence and with it solitude; the Sphinx stared at
Nothingness and Nothingness stared at the Sphinx, and I, the watcher,
watched. At length out of the nothingness arose something, and its
shape was the shape of woman. It stood before the Sphinx and said,
"Behold me! I am thy lost spirit, but thou, O Egypt, didst not create
me, for I created thee by a divine command. I am she whom men know as
Isis here upon the Nile, but whom all the world, and all the worlds
beyond the world know as Nature, the visible garment of the Almighty
God. Gone are those phantasies, man-nurtured and priest-conceived. Yet
I remain and thou remainest, aye, and though we be called by many
names in the infinite days to come as we have been called in the
infinite days that are gone, ever shall we remain until this little
floating globe of earth ceases from its journeyings and melts back
into that from which it came, the infinite arms of the infinite God."
Then the human-headed Sphinx rose from the rock whereon it had laid
from the beginning. It reared its giant bulk, it went upon its knees
and bowed to the woman-shape, the tiny woman-shape that was Isis, that
was Nature, that was the Executrix of God. Thrice it bowed--and
vanished.
The Spirit was left and I, Ayesha, was left. The Spirit turned and
looked on me and lo! to my sight it was shaped as I am shaped. Sadly
it looked, with grieving eyes, but never a word it spoke.
"Mother. My mother," I called, "speak to me, my mother!"
But never a word it answered, only it pointed to the skies and
suddenly was gone. Then I, Ayesha, I stood alone in the immeasurable
desert looking at the setting sun, looking at the rising moon, looking
at the evening star that shone between, and wept and wept and wept
because of my loneliness. For what company is there for a human soul
in sun and moon and evening star when the spirit that formed it and
them has departed, leaving them to gaze one upon the other, voiceless
in the void?
Such was my dream upon which I have pondered from year to year, asking
an answer to its riddle from sun and moon and evening star, and
finding none. Only the spirit can interpret its own problems, and to
me, because of my sins, because, like the gods of Egypt I am fashioned
of mud that veils my soul's dim lamp within, as yet that spirit is
choked and dumb. Still, one day the Nile of death that I have dammed
from me for so long will burst its barriers and wash away the mud.
Then the lamp will shine out again; then the spirit will come and
refresh it with its holy oil and breathe upon it with its breath, and
in that breath perchance I shall understand my dream and learn the
answer to its riddle.
Indeed already Time lays its foundations bare, for does not Holly tell
me that for nigh upon two thousand years her gods have been dead in
Egypt? For awhile they lingered on beneath the Greeks and Romans,
changed masks of what once they were; for awhile their effigies were
still painted upon the coffins of her people. Then the star of a new
Faith rose, a bright and holy star, and in its beams they withered and
crumbled into dust. Only the old Sphinx remains staring at the Nile
and mayhap in the silence of the night holds commune with Isis the
Mother, telling of dead kings and wars forgot, for being Nature's
self, Isis alone can never die although from age to age her vestments
change.
Yea, when I, Ayesha, fired the hall and burned those foul Persian
feasters, with them I slew the gods of Egypt, and their sad and solemn
statues stared a farewell to me through that wavering wall of flame.
Nay, it was not I who did it, nor was it I who brought its doom on
Sidon and his death on Ochus, but Destiny that used me as its sword,
as I used Bagoas, me, Fate's doom-driven daughter.
When I awoke it was still dark save for the light of the sinking moon,
and in the night-wind, with a faint continual voice, the tall reeds
whispered their prayer to Heaven. For though we know it not, all that
has life must pray or die. From the great star rushing through space
on its eternal journey to the humblest flower nestling beneath a
stone, everything must pray, for prayer is the blood of the spirit
that is in them and if that blood freezes, then they are resolved to
matter that cannot grow and, knowing neither hope nor fear, is lost in
the blind gulf of darkness.
I hearkened to those whispering reeds telling of the mysteries below
to the mysteries above, and on the wings of their sweet petitions,
sent up my own to Heaven.
For in truth I was troubled and knew not what to do. Here I could not
bide for long, since surely, soon or late the Persians would seek me
out and surely Bagoas, to cover his own crimes, would slay me as the
destroyer of his king. This did not affright me who was weary of the
world with all its horrors and in a mood to walk the gate of death,
hoping that beyond it I might find a better. But there were those with
me, my fellow servants to whom I had sworn safety and who put their
faith in me, as though in truth I were the goddess herself, and if I
died, certainly they would die also.
Therefore I must save them if I could. Yet how? I had no ship in which
to flee from Egypt, and if it were to hand, whither should I fly now
that all the earth was Persian? Oh! that Noot were here to counsel me.
That he lived somewhere I was sure, since had not his voice spoken in
the shrine and this by no priestly trick, for when I put up that
prayer for guidance, I knew not how it would be answered or by whom,
or if indeed it would but fall upon the deaf ears of the winds, and
like a dead leaf, in their breath be blown away and lost.
Yes, he still lived, yet how could I know that it was here he lived?
Mayhap he spoke from far beyond this stormy air of earth. Even so he
who had counselled me once might counsel me again.
"O whispering reeds," I cried in my heart, "with all your million
tongues, pray east and west and north and south, that Ayesha in her
need may be helped of the wisdom of the holy Noot."
Yes, thus I prayed like a little, bewildered child who sees God in a
cloud and thinks that flowers open for her joy and that the great
Pleiades look down from the sky and love her. Yes, toil and grief and
terror had made me like a little child.
Well, it is to such, rather than to the proud and learned, the rulers
of the earth and the challengers of Heaven, that answers oftenest come
and with them knowledge of the truth. At least to me, emptied of
strength and wisdom and in that weak hour, forgetful even of my
beauty, my great deeds, and the lore that I had won, swiftly there
came an answer.
Of a sudden, at the first blush of dawn upon night's pale cheek, a
priestess stood by my pallet,
"Awake, O Isis-come-to-Earth," she said, bowing. "A man stands without
who would have speech with you. He came here in a boat and when he was
challenged answered with all the signs, aye, and even spoke the secret
words known to few, those words that open the sanctuary's door. The
priests questioned him of his business. He answered that he could tell
it only to her who bore the jewelled /sistrum/, to her who veiled her
head with cloud like a mountain-top, to that Prophetess who in all
shrines is known as Child-of-Wisdom, but who among men was named
Ayesha, Daughter of Yarab."
Doubting me of this man and scenting treachery, I caused that
instructed priestess to repeat one by one the mystical words that he
had spoken. At last she uttered a certain syllable of which even she
did not know the meaning. But I knew it and knew also who had its
custody.
Filled with a great hope I rose and wrapped myself in a dark garment.
"Lead me to this man," I said, "but first make sure that three priests
stand round him with drawn swords."
She went and presently returned again, saying that the man awaited me
in the fore-court of the little temple, guarded as I had bidden. To
this court I followed her. It was but a small place, like to a large
room. I entered it from the sanctuary to the west. Through the eastern
door poured the first rays of the rising sun, that struck upon a man
who stood waiting in the centre of the court, guarded by three priests
with lifted swords.
I could not see his face, though perhaps even beneath my cowl he could
see mine upon which those rays also struck. At least I saw him start,
then fall to his knees, raising his hand in salute with a quick and
curious motion. It was enough. I knew him at once. This man was Philo
and no other. With a word I bade the armed priests leave us and the
priestess who had accompanied me bide in the shadow. Then I went
forward, saying,
"Rise, Philo, for whom I have looked so long that I began to think you
were no more to be found beneath the sun. Whence come you, Philo, and
for what purpose?"
"O Prophetess, O adored, O Lady divine," he answered in a voice of
joy, "I, your slave in the flesh and your fellow servant in the
goddess, greet you whom never I hoped to see again after all that has
passed in Egypt. Suffer that I may kiss your hand and thereby learn
that you are still a woman and not a ghost."
I stretched out my hand and reverently he touched it with his lips.
"Now tell your tale, friend Philo," I said. "Whence come you, most
welcome Philo, and by what magic do you find me here?"
"I come from far to the south, Prophetess, out of an ancient land of
which you shall learn afterward. For three moons have I struggled over
difficult seas driven by contrary winds, to reach the mouths of Nile
and to find you, if still you lived."
"And who sent you, friend Philo?"
"A certain Master who is known to both of us, he sent me."
"Is he perchance named Noot?" I asked in a low voice, "and if so, did
you sail hither over mortal seas, or over those through which Ra
travels in the Under-world?"
This I said wondering, for it came into my mind that he who knelt
before me might perchance be not a man but a shadow sent to summon me
to the halls of Osiris.
"Mortal seas I sailed; those of the Under-world still await my prow, O
Wisdom's Daughter. Here is the proof of it," and drawing a roll from
his bosom, with it he touched his brow in token of reverence, then
gave it to me.
I broke the seals, I opened that roll, and by the light of the rising
sun I read. It ran thus:
"From Noot, the son of Noot, the high-priest, the guardian of
Secrets, to Ayesha, Child of Isis, Wisdom's Daughter, the
Instructed, the Oracle: Thus saith Noot.
"I live, I do not sleep in my eternal house. My spirit shows me
that which passes upon the Nile. I know that you have obeyed my
commands which I gave to you before we parted in the bygone years,
O my begotten in the goddess. I know that you have waited
patiently in faith through many tribulations. I know also that
this writing will find you in an hour of great peril when for the
second time you have escaped from fire, leaving behind you the
ashes of your foes. Come to me now and at once, Philo the beloved
brother and the consecrated /sistrum/ that is the sceptre of your
office being your guides. Philo shall lead you; through all
dangers the /sistrum/ shall be your shield. I write no more.
"Obey, Mouth of Isis, bringing with you those that are left to the
service of the goddess. Read the seal of Noot, high-priest and
prophet, and tarry not."
I read and hid away the roll. Then I asked,
"Upon what wings do we fly to Noot who is so far from us, friend
Philo?"
"Upon those of a ship that is known to you, Prophetess, the ship named
/Hapi/, upon which already you have passed many perils. She lies
yonder fully manned in the outer fringe of this sea of reeds."
"How did you find those reeds, and how did you know that I was hidden
among them?" I asked curiously.
"Noot marked them on a chart he gave me and told me that in them,
where, as the story runs, Isis discovered the heart of Osiris, there I
should find the child of Isis. Prophetess, inquire no more."
I heard and returned thanks in my heart. Truly what I whispered to the
whispering reeds had been borne to the ears of Heaven.
The trireme /Hapi/, with her mast struck, lay hidden in shallow water
midst beds of tall bulrushes and papyrus plants, into which Philo had
worked her by the moonlight. All that day we laboured lading her with
the treasures of the temple of Isis and those of the secret shrine,
which were many, for during these times of trouble much gold and
priceless furnishing of precious metals had been hidden here among the
reeds. Also with them were some of the most ancient and hallowed
statues of the goddess fashioned in gold and ivory and alabaster
stone.
All of these together with my own great wealth of jewels and other
gear were borne in boats to the /Hapi/ and stored within her hold
where they lay hid beneath much merchandise that Philo had purchased
at the ports of Nile. Hither he had come disguised as a merchant from
the south, having his ship laden with the produce of Punt such as
ivory and rare woods. These he sold at the ports where he gathered
tidings of all that passed in Egypt, and having purchased other goods
in place of them, passed unsuspected up the Nile to the secret Isle of
Reeds where Noot had bidden him to make inquiry for me at the time of
full moon in this very month. It was not difficult for him to find
this isle as it seemed that, being an initiate of Isis, once in bygone
days he had visited it on the business of the goddess.
While we were at this work we saw boats full of Persian soldiers pass
down Nile, as though they searched for someone, and toward the evening
saw them return up Nile again, heading for Memphis. I knew for whom
they sought and noted that they did so very idly, since all believed
that I and my company had perished with the Persians in the burning
temple.
At nightfall I gathered the priests and priestesses, in all they were
thirty and three in number, and spoke to them, saying,
"Here in Egypt we who are the servants of the goddess can stay no
more. The gods of Khem are fallen, their shrines are desolate, and
death by sword and fire, or by the torturer's hooks, is the lot of
those that worship them. Noot, the high-priest, the Master, the
Prophet, summons us from afar, bidding us bear the worship of the
goddess to new lands that lie I know not where. Philo, our brother, is
his messenger and here is the message written in this roll; read it if
you will. I, the Oracle and Prophetess, obey the summons; this very
night I sail setting my course for seas unknown, and trusting to the
goddess to be my guide, mayhap into the gates of death. Noot the high-
priest bids you to accompany me. Yet I give you choice. Bide on here
if you will and live out your lives disguised as scribes or peasants,
for in the temples you can no longer find a home. Mayhap thus you
shall escape the vengeance of the Persians. Or come with me if you
will, knowing that I promise you nothing. Let each speak as the Spirit
directs the heart within."
They consulted together; then one by one they said that it was their
mind to be of my company since they held it better to die with me and
pass pure to the arms of the goddess rather than to live on defiled,
or perchance to perish miserably beneath the stripes of the
executioners, having first been forced to do sacrifice to the Persian
god of Fire. So man by man and woman by woman they swore the oath that
might be broken by those who would escape the jaws of the Devourer,
and in token kissed the holy /sistrum/ that I held to the lips of
each. Then for the last time we celebrated the rites of Isis in a
temple of Isis on the Nile and with weeping and with woe sang the
psalm of farewell, such as is chanted over the dead of our fellowship.
This done we went to the boats and were rowed on board the /Hapi/.
When the moon was bright the mariners, fierce, foreign men most of
them, such as I had never seen before, who wore great earrings of gold
and had rings thrust through their noses, poled the vessel out from
among the reeds into the deep waters of the Nile. Here they hoisted
the mast and set the sails which presently filled before the strong
wind blowing from the upper land, and bore us forward swiftly.
Passing out of the Nile by a little-used mouth, as we could do now
that the river was in flood, we entered the canal that joins the seas,
which canal the old Pharaohs dug and the Persians had caused to be
cleared of drifting sand. By it, though not easily, for in places it
was both narrow and shallow, at length we came safely into the Red Sea
and bade farewell to Egypt. None hindered us on this journey, and,
having crossed the lakes, only once did we stay at a little unravaged
town at the far mouth of the canal, to buy bread, fresh fish, and meat
wherewith to stock our ship.
This town we found to be full of rumours, for the news of the death of
Ochus had reached it and many tales were told of the manner of his
end. That which these coast-dwellers favoured was that Set the god had
appeared in person at a feast, and seizing Ochus, had set him upon a
winged Apis, that very Apis bull which he had sacrificed and eaten,
and borne him away to hell. At this fable I smiled, though indeed in
it there was a seed of truth, since without doubt, if there be a hell,
the blood-soaked Ochus was its inhabitant that day.
Now of all that journey I, who grow weary of writing, will omit the
story. Most marvellously it prospered, so much so that I think, unseen
by us, spirits from the Under-world must have stood upon our prow.
From day to day a strong and steady wind blowing from the north drove
us forward swiftly. No storm smote us nor did we strike upon any rock,
and when we made land for water, either it was uninhabited, or the
folk who dwelt there, strange barbarous folk, were friendly.
So the time went by creeping from moon to moon and ever we sailed on
southward. Nor was the time unhappy, since there I sat in that same
cabin which had been mine when Pharaoh gave me as a bribe to Tenes and
that therefore was familiar to me, having something of the aspect of a
home. Indeed with a certain taste of acid pleasure, from time to time
I recalled all that had happened to me upon this ship and in that very
cabin. For instance where I had wrung the writing from the passion-
maddened Tenes; where he had stood and knelt; where his shadow had
struck upon the cedar walls. There, too, in the wood was an arrow
hole, which arrow should have drunk my life.
Then in the waist of the ship was the place where the boarders from
the /Holy Fire/ had won aboard, whence Kallikrates, the Grecian
captain turned heirophant, had beat them back so gallantly. Aft, also,
was the shelter where I had visited him and dressed his wounds that
were almost to the death. Here I placed upon his finger the charmed
scarab ring of Khaemuas, the Magician, whereon were cut symbols with a
secret meaning, though they seemed to read only as "Son of Ra," that
this ring might raise him from the darkness of death, as Osiris rose
and as Ra rises from the Under-world.
Here, too, it was that I heard him mistake me for another woman and to
that woman give his thanks, thus opening my eyes to all the folly of
my heart. Years ago these things had chanced to me, and now when they
were dead things, I say that I could dream of them with that soft
grief which is like to the tenderness of eve after the promise of the
morning and the burning noonday heat have become but memories buried
beneath the dust of time. Yet it is true that now and again those
memories renewed their life, especially within the shrines of sleep.
Oh! it was all so long ago. Had not Philo's beard, that I remembered
brown and rich, since then grown gray, and were not his curling locks
thinned upon his temples? And I who then was young, had I not grown to
middle-age, though still I remained more lovely than any other woman
in the world, and was not my soul burdened with much learning, and had
not the sorrows I had passed pierced it with a thousand spears? Now,
too, doubtless Kallikrates was dead, and all the dreams to which he
alone among men had given birth within me had gone wherever dreams may
go, perchance to be lost in the vast unknown, or perchance after the
change called death, there to be found again?
Yet I, I wandered forward on my path, Fate-driven as of old, to what
end I knew not and did not greatly care to know. For now it seemed my
part was played; the world and its stirrings were left behind me and
the last shreds of my web must be spun of poor stuff in petty, unknown
places, where I should patter prayers beneath an alien sky till it
pleased death to enfold me in its wings and bear me to the depths of
its enormous habitations.
Well, so let it be, since, as I have said, I was weary of the world;
its toils, its bloody issues, and its perpetual strivings to grasp
that which man or woman may not hold--except in dreams.
With Philo I talked much, but always of the past; of those things
which we had experienced together, or of other events of his earlier,
adventurous life, or of my own. A most pleasant companion was this
Philo, of a shrewd wit and some learning also, a brave citizen of the
world who had seen much, and yet one who revered the gods, whatever
the gods might be, and had thoughts of that which lies beyond the
world, whatever this may be. But of the present or of what had
happened to him since he sailed away with Noot, my Master, when Ochus
invaded Egypt, and least of all of the future and whither we went or
why, I did not talk at all.
For when these matters came to my lips, as they did even before we
were clear of Nile, Philo made a certain sign to me which being
interpreted meant that he was under an oath, a very solemn oath, not
to speak of any of them, which oath I respected, as indeed I was bound
to do. Therefore I asked no more and sailed on careless as a child
that recks not of what is to come and from whom death is still very
far away.
CHAPTER XVIII
THE TALE OF PHILO
Once more it was a night of full moon. As we had done for many days we
were sailing before that steady wind along the coast of Libya, having
this upon our right hand, and upon our left, at a distance, a line of
rocky reef upon which breakers fell continually.
It was a very splendid moon that turned the sea to silver and lit up
the palm-grown shore almost as brightly as does the sun. I sat upon
the deck near to my cabin and by me stood Philo watching that shore
intently.
"For what do you seek, Philo? Are you in fear of sunken rocks?"
"Nay, Child of Isis, yet it is true that I seek a certain rock which
by my reckoning should now be in sight. Ah!"
Then suddenly he ran forward and shouted an order. Men leapt up and
sprang to the ropes while the rowers began to get out the sweeps. As
they did this the /Hapi/ came round so that her bow pointed to the
shore and the great sail sank to the deck. Then the long oars bit into
the water and drove us shoreward.
Philo returned.
"Look, Lady," he said. "Now that the moon has risen higher you can see
well," and he pointed to a headland in front of us.
Following his outstretched hand with my eyes I perceived a great rock
many cubits in height and carven on the crest of it a head far larger
than that of the huge Sphinx in Egypt. Or perchance it was not carved;
perchance Nature had fashioned it thus. At least there it stood and
will stand, a terrible and hideous thing, having the likeness of an
Ethiopian's head gazing eternally across the sea.
"What is it?" I asked.
"Lady, it is the Guardian of the Gate of the land whither we go.
Legend tells that it is shaped to the likeness of the first king of
that land who lived thousands upon thousands of years before the
pyramids were built; also that his bones lie in it, or at least, that
it is haunted by his spirit. For this reason none dare to touch and
much less to climb yonder monstrous rock."
Then he left me to see to the matters of the ship, because, as he said
in going, the entrance to the place was strait and dangerous. But I
sat on alone upon the deck watching this strange new sight.
Within an hour, rowing carefully, we entered the mouth of a river,
having the rock shaped like to a Negro's head upon our right. Then it
was that I saw something which put me in mind of Philo's tale about an
ancient king. For there, unless I dreamed, upon the very point of the
skull of the effigy, of a sudden I perceived a tall form clad in
armour which shone silvery bright in the moon's rays. It leaned upon a
great spear, and when we were opposite to it, straightened itself and
bent forward as though to stare at our ship beneath. Next, thrice it
lifted the spear in salutation; thrice it bowed, as I thought in
obeisance to me, and having done so, threw its arms wide and was gone.
Afterward I asked Philo if he also had seen this thing.
"Nay," he answered in a doubtful voice as though the matter were one
of which he did not wish to talk, adding,
"It is not the custom of mariners to study that head in the moonlight,
because the story goes that if they do and chance to see some such
ghost as that you tell of, it casts a spear toward them, who then are
doomed to die within the year. Yet at you, Child of Isis, he cast no
spear, only bowed and gave the salute of kings, or so you tell me.
Therefore doubtless neither you nor any of us, your companions, are
marked for death."
I smiled and said that I whose wraith was in touch with Heaven feared
not the wrath of any ancient king, nor did we speak more of this
matter. Yet in the after ages it came into my mind that there was
truth in this story and that this long-dead king appeared thus to give
greeting to her who was destined to rule his land through many
generations; also that perchance he was not dead at all, but, having
drunk of a certain Cup of Life of which I was to learn, lived
eternally there upon the rock.
I laid me down and slept, and when I woke in the bright morning it was
to find that we had passed from that river into a canal dug by man
which, though deep, was too narrow for the sweeps to work. Therefore
the /Hapi/ must be pushed along with poles and towed by ropes dragged
at by the mariners from a path that ran upon the bank.
For three days we travelled thus making but slow progress, since the
toil of dragging so large a ship was great, and at night we tied up to
the bank, as boats do upon the Nile. All this while we saw no
habitation though certain ruins we did see. Indeed that country was
very desolate and full of great swamps that were tenanted by wild
beasts, the haunt of owls and bitterns, where lions roared and
serpents crept, great serpents such as I had never seen.
At length at noon on the fourth day we came to a lake where the canal
ended, which lake once had been a harbour, for we saw stone quays
where still were tied some boats that seemed to be little used. Here
Philo said that we must disembark and travel on by land. So we left
the /Hapi/, sadly enough for my part, because those were happy, quiet
days that I had spent on board of her, veritable oases in the storm-
swept desert of my life.
Scarcely had we set foot upon the land when appeared, I knew not
whence, a company of men, handsome, hook-nosed, sombre men, such as I
had seen among the crew upon the /Hapi/. These men, though so fierce
in appearance, were not barbarians, for they wore linen garments that
gave to them the aspect of priests. Moreover, their leaders could
speak Arabic in its most ancient form, which, having studied it, as it
chanced, I knew. With this army, who bore bows and spears, came a
multitude of folk of a baser sort that carried litters, or burdens,
also a guard of great fellows that Philo told me were my especial
escort. Now my patience failed so that I turned upon Philo saying,
"Hitherto, Friend, I have trusted myself to you, because it seemed
decreed that I should do so. Now tell me, I pray you, what means this
journey over countless leagues of sea into a land untrod, and whither
go I in the fellowship of these barbarians? Because you brought me a
certain writing in an acceptable hour, I gave myself into your
keeping, nor did I even ask any revelation from the goddess or seek to
solve the mystery by spells. Yet, now I ask and, as the Prophetess of
Isis, demand the truth of you, her humbler servant."
"Lady divine," answered Philo, bowing himself before me, "what I have
withheld is by command, the command of a very great one, of none less
than Noot the aged and holy. You go to an old land that is yet new to
find Noot, your master and mine."
"In the flesh or in the spirit?" I asked.
"In the flesh, Prophetess, if still he lives, as these men say, and
see, I accompany you, I whom in the past you have found faithful. If I
fail you, let my life pay forfeit, and for the rest, ask it of the
holy Noot."
"It is enough," I said. "Lead on."
We entered the litters; we laded the bearers with the treasures of
Isis and with my own peculiar wealth, and having placed the ship
/Hapi/ under guard, marched into the unknown like to some great
caravan of merchants. For days we marched, following a broad road that
was broken down in places, over plains and through vast swamps, and at
night sleeping in caves or covered by tents which we brought with us.
This was a strange journey that I made surrounded by that host of
hook-nosed, silent, ghost-like men, who, as I noted, loved the night
better than they did the day. Almost might I have thought that they
had been sent from Hades to conduct us to those gates from which for
mortals there is no return. My fellowship of the priests and
priestesses grew afraid and clustered round me at night, praying to be
led back to familiar lands and faces.
I answered them that what I dared they must dare also, and that the
goddess was as near to us here as she had been in Egypt, nor could
death be closer to us than it was in Egypt. Yea, I bade them have
faith, since without faith we could not be at peace one hour who,
lacking it, must be overwhelmed with terrors, even with the walls of
citadels.
They hearkened, bowing their heads and saying that whatever else they
might doubt, they trusted themselves to me.
So we went on, passing through a country where more of these half-
savage men that I learned were called /Amahagger/ dwelt in villages
surrounded by their cattle, or by colonies in caves. At last there
arose before us a mighty mountain whose towering cliffs had the
appearance of a wall so vast that the eye could not compass it. By a
gorge we penetrated that mountain and found within it an enormous,
fertile plain, and on the plain a city larger than Memphis or than
Thebes, but a city half in ruins.
Passing over a great bridge spanning a wide moat once filled with
water that now here and there was dry, we entered the walls of that
city and by a street broader than any I had ever seen, bordered by
many noble, broken houses, though some of these seemed still to be
inhabited, came to a glorious temple like to those of Egypt, only
greater, and with taller columns. Across its grass-grown courts, that
were set one within another, we were carried to some inner sanctuary.
Here we descended from the litters and were led to sculptured chambers
that seemed to have been made ready to receive us, where we cleansed
ourselves of the dust of travel and ate. Then came Philo, who
conducted me to a little lamp-lit hall, for now the night had fallen,
where was a chair of state such as high-priests used, in which at his
bidding I sat myself.
I think that being weary with travel, I must have slept in that chair,
since I dreamed or seemed to dream that I received worship such as is
given to a queen, or even to a goddess. Heralds hailed me, voices sang
to me, even spirits appeared in troops to talk to me, the spirits of
those who thousands of years before had departed from the earth. They
told me strange stories of the past and of the future; tales of a
fallen people, of a worship and a glory that had gone by and been
swallowed in the gulfs of Time. Then gathering in a multitude they
seemed to hail me, crying,
"Welcome, appointed Queen! Build thou up that which has fallen.
Discover thou that which is lost. Thine is the strength, thine the
opportunity, yet beware of the temptations, beware of the flesh, lest
the flesh should overcome the spirit and by its fall add ruin unto
ruin, the ruin of the soul to the ruin of the body."
I awoke from my vision and saw Philo standing before me.
"Hearken, Philo," I said. "Of these mysteries I can bear no more. The
time has come when you must speak, or face my wrath. Why have I been
brought hither to this strange and distant land where it seems that I
must dwell in a place of ruins?"
"Because the holy Noot so commanded, O Child of Wisdom," he answered.
"Was it not set down in the writing I gave you at the Isle of Reeds
upon the Nile?"
"Where then is the holy Noot?" I asked. "Here I see him not. Is he
dead?"
"I do not think that he is dead, Lady. Yet to the world he is dead. He
has become a hermit, one who dwells in a cave in a perilous place not
very far from this city. To-morrow I will bring you to him, if that be
your will. So only can you see him who now for years has never left
that cave, or so I think, save to fetch the food which is prepared for
him."
"A strange tale, Philo, though that Noot should become a hermit does
not amaze me, since such was ever his desire. Now tell me how he came
hither, and you with him?"
"Lady, you will remember that in the bygone years when Nectanebes, he
who was Pharaoh, fled up Nile, the holy Noot embarked upon my ship,
the /Hapi/, to sail to the northern cities, that there he might treat
with the Persians for the ransom of those temples of Egypt that
remained unravished."
"I remember, Philo. What chanced to you upon that journey?"
"This, Lady: that we were very nearly slain, every one of us, for whom
the Persians had set a trap, thinking to snare Noot and his company
and torture him till he revealed where the treasures of the temples of
Isis were hid away. Nevertheless, because I am a good sailor and
because that warrior priest, Kallikrates, was brave, we escaped into
the canal which is called the /Road of Rameses/ and so at last out to
sea, for to return up Nile was impossible. Then Noot commanded that I
should sail on southerly upon a course he seemed to know well enough;
or perchance the goddess taught it to him; I cannot say. At least I
obeyed, so that in the end we reached that harbour which is guarded by
a rock carved to the likeness of an Ethiopian's head, and thence
travelled to this place, still guided by the wisdom of Noot who knew
the road."
"And Kallikrates? What became of Kallikrates--who it seems was with
you?" I asked in an indifferent voice, though my heart burned to hear
his answer.
"Lady, so far as it is known to me this is the story of Kallikrates
and the Princess Amenartas."
"The Princess Amenartas! By all the gods, what is your meaning, Philo?
She went up Nile with Nectanebes her father, he who was Pharaoh."
"Nay, Lady, she went down Nile with Kallikrates, or perhaps with Noot,
or perhaps with herself alone. I do not know with whom she hid since I
never saw her, nor learned that she was aboard my ship until we were
two days' journey out to sea and the coasts of Egypt were far behind
us."
"Is it so?" I asked coldly, though I was filled with bitter anger.
"And what did the holy Noot when he found that this woman was aboard
his vessel?"
"Lady, he did nothing except look on her somewhat doubtfully."
"And what did the priest Kallikrates? Did he strive to be rid of her?"
"Nay, Lady, and indeed that would have been impossible, unless he had
thrown her overboard. He did nothing except talk with her--that is, so
far as I saw."
"Well, then, Philo, where is she now, and where is Kallikrates? I do
not see him in this place."
"Lady, I cannot tell you, but I think it probable that they are dead
and in the fellowship of Osiris. When we had been some weeks at sea we
were driven by storm to an island off the coast under the lee of which
we took shelter, a very fertile and beautiful island, peopled by a
kindly folk. After we had sailed again from that island it was
discovered that the priest Kallikrates and the Royal Princess
Amenartas were missing from the ship, nor because of the strong wind
that blew us forward was it possible for us to return to seek for
them. I made inquiry of the matter and the sailors told me that they
had been fishing together and that a shark which took their bait
pulled them both into the sea; in which case doubtless they were
drowned."
"And did you believe that story, Philo?"
"Nay, Lady. I understood at once that it was one which the sailors had
been bribed to tell. Myself I think that they went to the island in
one of the boats of the people who dwell there; perhaps because they
could no longer bear the cold eyes of Noot fixed upon them, or perhaps
to gather fruit, for which those who have been long upon water often
conceive a great desire. But," he added simply, "I do not know why
they should have done this seeing that the island-dwellers brought us
plenty of fruits in their boats."
"Doubtless they preferred to pluck them fresh with their own hands,
Philo."
"Perhaps, Lady, or perhaps they wished to stay awhile upon that
island. At least I noted that the Princess took her garments and her
jewels with her, which she could scarcely have done if the shark had
dragged her into the sea."
"Are you so sure, Philo, that she did not leave some of those jewels
behind--in /your/ keeping, Philo? It is very strange to me that the
Princess Amenartas could have come aboard your ship and have left your
ship, and you know nothing."
Now Philo looked up innocently and said,
"Surely it is lawful for a captain to receive faring money from his
passengers, and that I admit I did. But I do not understand why the
Child of Wisdom is so wrath because a Greek and a great lady were by
chance left together upon an island where, for aught I know, one or
other of them may have had friends."
"Am I not the guardian of the honour of the goddess?" I answered. "And
do you not know that under our law Kallikrates was sworn to her
alone?"
"If so, Prophetess, doubtless that captain, or that priest, remembers
his oath and deals with this princess as though she were his sister or
his mother. At the least the goddess can guard her own honour, so why
should you fret your soul concerning it, Prophetess? Lastly, it is
probable that by now both of them are dead and have made all things
clear to Isis in the heavenly halls."
Thus he prattled on, adding lie to lie as only a Greek can do. I
listened until I could bear no more. Then I said but one word. It was
"Begone!"
He went humbly, yet as I thought, smiling.
Oh! now I saw it all. Noot had made a plot to remove Kallikrates far
from me, so that I might never look upon him again. Philo knew of this
plot, and through him Amenartas knew it also. Unknown to Noot she
bribed Philo to hide her upon his ship till they were far from land,
though whether the plan was known to Kallikrates I could not say, nor
did it greatly matter. Then the rest followed. Amenartas appeared upon
the ship and cast her net about Kallikrates who had sworn to have done
with her, and the end can be guessed. Noot was wrath with them, so
wrath that when the chance came they fled away, purposing to stay upon
that island until they could find a ship to take them back to Egypt or
elsewhere. Thus, I was sure, ran the story, and, as it proved
afterward, I was right.
Well, they were gone and as I hoped, dead, since only death could
cover up such a sin, and for my part I was glad that I had done with
Kallikrates and his light-of-love. And yet there, seated on the couch
of state, I wept--because of the outrage done to Isis whom I served.
Or was it for myself that I wept? I cannot say, I only know that my
tears were bitter. Also I was very lonely in this strange and desolate
place. Because Noot had commanded it, sending for me from afar, and
what he commanded, that I must obey. Where, then, was Noot, who, Philo
swore, still lived? Why had he not appeared to greet me? I covered my
eyes with my hands and threw out my soul to Noot, saying,
"Come to me, O Noot. Come to me, my beloved Master."
Lo! a voice, a well-remembered voice answered.
"Daughter, I am here."
I let fall my hand. I gazed with my tear-stained eyes, and behold!
before me, white-robed, gold-filleted, snowy-bearded, grown very
ancient and ethereal, stood the prophet and high-priest, my Master.
For a moment I thought that it was his spirit which I saw. Then he
moved, and I heard his white robes rustle, and knew that there stood
Noot himself whom I had travelled so many thousand leagues to find.
I rose; I ran to him; I seized his thin hand and kissed it, while he,
murmuring, "My Daughter, at last, at last!" leaned forward and with
his lips touched me on the brow.
"Far away your summons reached me in an hour of peril," I said.
"Behold! I obeyed, I came. In faith I came, asking no questions, and I
am here in safety, for I think the goddess herself was with me on that
journey. Tell me all, O Noot. What is this place? How were you brought
to it and why have you called me to you?"
"Hearken, Daughter," he said, seating himself beside me on the throne-
like couch. "This city is named Kor. Once she was queen of the world,
as after her, Babylon, Thebes, Tyre, and Athens are, or have been
queens. From Kor thousands of years ago in the black, lost ages Egypt
was peopled, as were other lands. In those dim days by another title
her citizens worshipped Isis, Queen of Heaven, only they named her
/Truth/ whom in Egypt you know as Maat. Then apostasy arose and many
of this great people, abandoning the pure and gentle worship of Isis
wrapped in the veil of Truth, under the name of Rezu, a fierce sun-
daemon, set up another god to whom they made human sacrifices, as the
Sidonians did to Moloch. Yea, they sacrificed men, women, and children
by thousands, and even learned to eat their flesh, first as a sacred
rite, and afterward to satisfy their appetites. Heaven saw and grew
wrath; Heaven smote the people with a mighty pestilence, so that they
perished and perished till few were left. Thus Kor fell by the sword
of God as, for like cause, fell Sidon."
"Of all this afterward," I answered impatiently. "Tell me first, how
came you here? Long years ago you sailed down Nile to treat with the
Persians for the ransom of the temples of Egypt, a mission in which it
seems you failed, my Father."
"Aye, Ayesha, I failed. It was but a trap, since those false-hearted
Fire-worshippers thought to take me captive and hold my life in gage
against all the treasures of Isis. By the cunning and seamanship of
Philo and the courage of a priest named Kallikrates, whom you may
still remember after all these years," here he glanced at me sharply,
"I escaped when a gang of them disguised as envoys strove to snare me.
But the road up Nile being barred, we were forced to fly south, and
down Pharaoh's Great Ditch, till at length, after many wanderings and
adventures, we came to this land, as it was fated that I should do.
You will remember, Daughter, that I told you I believed that we were
parting for a long while, although I believed also that we should meet
again in the flesh."
"I remember well," I answered, "also that I swore to come to you at
the appointed hour."
"I came to this land," went on Noot, "but Kallikrates, the Greek
captain who was a priest of Isis, never reached it. He was lost on the
way."
"With another, my Father. But now I have heard that story from Philo."
"With another who caused him to break his vows. Be sure, Daughter,
that I knew nothing of her plot or that she was hidden aboard the
ship, though perchance Philo knew. The goddess hid it from me,
doubtless for her own purposes."
"Are this pair dead, or do they still live, my Father?"
"I cannot say; that also is hidden from me. Better for them if they
are dead, since soon or late for such sacrilege vengeance will fall
upon the head of one, if not of both of them. Peace be to them. May
they be forgiven! At least as I think they loved each other much and,
since love is very strong, all who have ever loved where they ought
not should have pity on them," and again his questioning eyes played
upon my face.
CHAPTER XIX
THE HERMITAGE OF NOOT
"Tell me of what has passed in Egypt since Ochus conquered and
Nectanebes fled away. Does Ochus still live, Daughter?" asked Noot
after a pause during which both of us had sat staring at the ground.
"Nay, Father, Ochus is dead and by my hand, or through it," and I told
him all that story of the burning of the temple of Isis at my command
and of the Persians who defiled it.
"A great deed such as you alone could have planned," he muttered, "but
terrible, terrible!"
"Then your soul must bear its burden, Prophet, since it was your voice
that we heard in the sanctuary, when in our extreme we prayed for
guidance, and it told us to go forward. There are those with me who
can bear witness that they heard your very voice, as I do."
"Mayhap, Daughter. It is true that on a certain day not so many moons
ago, I seemed to hear you calling to heaven in great trouble and
danger, also that by direction which came I know not whence, I
answered in my spirit that you must 'fulfil and fear not.' What you
were to fulfil I did not know, though it came to my mind that the
business had something to do with the burning of a temple."
"As it had indeed. Well, I fulfilled, as Ochus Artaxerxes with some
hundreds of his Persian ravagers can testify before all the gods until
the end of time, for those dogs at least have ceased to pollute the
earth and to-day are enriching hell. There let them lie with Tenes and
Nectanebes also, if in truth he has joined them, and many another
false priest and king. Afterward we will talk of them and all their
deeds of shame. But first tell me why I am here. For what end did you
summon me from Egypt. Was it to save me from death?"
"Nay, Ayesha, from more than that. Why should I wish to hold you back
from the great boon of death in which so soon I must have joined you?
I summoned you because I was commanded so to do, that now when Isis
has passed from Egypt, you should cause her worship to re-arise at Kor
which was her ancient home. It is willed that here you should abide
and once more build up this people and make it great by the help of
the Queen of Heaven who then will lead it on to triumph and to glory."
"That is a mighty task, Prophet. Still perchance with your aid it may
be done if the gods give me life and wisdom."
He shook his head and answered,
"Look not to my aid, for at length my day is finished. Has not Philo
told you that I mix no more with matters of the world, I who for years
past have dwelt a hermit in a terrible place, sheltered only by a cave
and lost in the contemplation of holy things?"
"No, Father, he has told me little or nothing--by your will, or so he
said," I replied, amazed.
"Yet it is so; moreover, presently I must return to that prison whence
I came, there to await the change called death. I have played my part,
but your work still remains to do; Philo will aid you in it."
"Why do you live in that place, Father, leaving me without the
guidance of your wisdom?"
"Because there I guard a great secret, that was revealed to me long
ago, it matters not how, the greatest secret in the whole world--that
of how men may escape death and live on eternally upon the earth."
Now I stared at him, thinking that age and abstinence had made him
mad. Then, to test the matter, I asked,
"If it be so great a secret, why do you tell it to me, Master?"
"Because I must. Because I know well that if I do not, you would
discover it for yourself, and being unwarned, would fall into the
trap, and still living beneath the sun, dare to clothe yourself with
this garment of immortality. It was for this reason that until twice
the command had come to me, I would not summon you to Kor."
Now a new thought thrilled my soul. If this strange tale were true; if
indeed here on earth there could be found such a door leading to the
divine, why should I not pass it, and become as are the gods? Only I
did not believe that it was true.
"Surely you have dreamed in your loneliness, my Father," I said. "But
know that if you did not dream, if it were true, I, Ayesha, should be
minded to wear that robe of life eternal. Why not, O Prophet?"
"Because, Ayesha, the man or woman who dared to eat of this fruit
forbidden to their race here on earth, where death is decreed for all,
would be a man or woman who dared to enter into hell."
"I think otherwise, Prophet Noot, I think that this man or woman would
enter into glory and become the ruler of the world," I answered, and
as I spoke the words my eyes flashed and my breast heaved.
"Not so, Ayesha, since from that fatal peak of pride Heaven will beat
back all human feet. Oh, hearken to me and purge your soul of the
madness of this desire by which I see already it is possessed. It was
laid upon me to reveal this secret to you, which I think was given me
for that very purpose, so that you might show your greatness by
rejecting it, the deadliest bribe that the god of Ill ever offered to
mortal woman."
"Or perchance by accepting it, Master!"
"Nay, nay! Bethink you. Is the world a fit place for the undying?
Moreover, this secret that I guard is but the world's spirit, not that
of immortality; the hidden force from which our earth draws its
strength, but which will perish with the earth, as it must do upon a
day still hidden in the deeps of time. The drinker of that cup
therefore would become, not eternal, but long-lived only, destined to
perish at last with this passing star. For him death would not be
destroyed, it would only be delayed, waiting ever to snare him in the
end. Meanwhile he must endure desolate and alone, watching the
generations pass one by one to their appointed rest; while, filled
perchance with fearful appetites which he must know eternally and yet
remain unsatisfied, he stands but as a frozen rock upon the plain,
wearing a human shape, yet alien to mortality, though still torn by
its ambitions, its loves, its hates, its hopes, its fears, and waiting
terrified for that predestined moment when this globe shall crumble
and death shall devour it and him.
"I am old, I am feeble, my hour is well nigh done, I pass to my repose
in Heaven. Ayesha, I have no strength to stay your feet, if you elect
to drink this cup my weak hand cannot dash it from your lips. Yet as
one who has taught and loved you, as one to whom the gods have given
great wisdom, I pray you to thrust aside this great temptation. As our
faith teaches truly, already your spirit is immortal and has its home
prepared above. Desire not, therefore, to perpetuate your flesh, since
if you do, Ayesha, I tell you that you will become but as a painted
mummy in a tomb, simulating life, yet dead and cold within. Swear to
me, Daughter, that you will lock this knowledge in your heart and
thrust the poison from your lips."
"You speak wisely," I answered, "aye, as one inspired by the truth,
and though I take no oaths, it is my purpose to do your will. Yet,
Father, what is this secret? Having told me so much, tell all, lest I
should go to discover it for myself."
"Daughter, near to this ancient city, amid the mountain cliffs, deep
in the bowels of the rocks burns a travelling fire which is the very
soul of the world, the flaming heart that gives it life. Yet this fire
is no fire, but rather the essence of existence, and he who bathes in
it will be filled with that essence and endure while it endures."
"Perchance such a one might be destroyed by that fire," I answered
doubtfully.
"Daughter, I would that I could leave you thinking thus, for then a
great fear would pass from me. But we who are the chief servants of
Isis dare not hide the truth from one another, since to do so is to
break our oaths. Moreover, in this matter I do not speak with my own
voice, but with that of a Strength which is greater than I, to whom
now I stand so near that almost it and I are one. Therefore to your
eyes I must withdraw all veils, showing you what is, as it is, and not
as I would have it be. Yonder fire will not destroy the mortal who
finds the courage to stand in its raging path; it will give him life,
and with it such strength, such beauty, and such wisdom as have never
been the lot of man born of woman. Also it will give him such
passions, such despairs, such unending woes as hitherto no mortal
heart has known.
"There is the truth. Ask me not how it comes into my keeping and what
that voice may be which is speaking it through my lips. A minute gone
this truth was mine alone, or perchance mine and one other's. Now it
is yours also, and being yours, I pray to that Divine from which we
come and whither we return again, that it may give you strength and
the true wisdom, knowing all, to reject all, and turning aside from
this glittering guerdon of enduring life, patiently to walk your human
path to the end appointed to our human feet."
"Will you show me this fire, Prophet?"
"Aye, if you will, for so I am commanded," he answered faintly; "yet
why look upon that which must excite desire?"
Then weariness overcame him and he sank down swooning, so that had I
not caught him, he would have fallen.
Noot abode three days at Kor and talked with me of many things, but at
that time of the wonderful Secret of Life he spoke no more. As though
by consent both of us let that matter lie awhile. For the rest there
was much to say. I told him everything that had passed in Egypt and
the outer world since long years before he had left me to sail down
Nile, never to return. I told him how I had obeyed his last commands
to the letter, and surrounded though I was by foes, had preserved the
worship of Isis in her temple from season to season, celebrating her
festivals in their appointed course, though I never dared to leave its
walls.
"So, Ayesha," he said when I had done, "while I have been a hermit
here at Kor, you have been a hermit at Memphis. Well, each of us has
served the goddess as best might be, so may she reward us both
according to our deserts, which doubtless are but small. And now my
task is finished, but yours lies before you, seeing that you still
have strength, even if your youth has gone."
"Yes," I answered somewhat bitterly, "mid-age has overtaken me, my
youth has passed in the service of Heaven, and what has Heaven given
to me after all my wars and strivings? Just this--that in a savage,
desolate land among ruins and barbarians I must begin anew. I must
restore a faith decayed, collect those barbarians into armies and
order them, enact laws and cause them to be obeyed, fight battles,
till lands, build ships and carry on commerce, collect revenues and
spend them wisely, labour without cease day by day, finding but little
rest at night because of the troubles that await the morrow. I must be
at once a high-priestess, an oracle, a general, a law-giver, a judge,
an architect, a land-tiller and a queen beneath an alien sky; without
counsel, without friends, without love, without children to tend me in
my age or to pile the earth upon my bones. Such is the lot that the
goddess has given to her priestess Ayesha in payment of all her
strivings."
Thus I spoke bitterly enough, but Noot answered with a gentle smile,
"At least, Daughter, it might have been more evil. You have a planning
and a thoughtful mind and here you can shape all things afresh to your
desire. You love power and here you will be absolute, a very queen,
you who cannot brook denial. Here there will be none to say you nay.
You hate rivals who would rule alone. Here they will be lacking. You
desire to remain celibate who are wed to the spirit. Here no more
kings or others will come to trouble you, plotting to win your beauty.
It has ever been your wish to commune with Nature and that Divine from
which it springs; here in this deserted place is Nature's very home
and in solitude the Divine draws near to empty souls.
"Truly you should be thankful, therefore, whose prayers have been
fulfilled, who have attained to all you sought, whose ambitions are
satisfied and who in the holy calm and the healthful weariness that
follows upon long-continued labours, at last when your task is done,
will sink gently to the grave to seek their reward elsewhere. Soon,
very soon, you will be as I am and when that day comes there will be
an empty hermitage yonder where in darkness and in contemplation you
can patiently await the end and those new endeavours which, after it,
may be appointed to you elsewhere. For be sure of this, Ayesha--all
existence is a ladder up which painfully and with many slips we must
climb step by step."
"And when we reach the top, what then, Master?"
"I do not know, Daughter, but I do know that if we fall to the bottom,
all those steps must be climbed again, only this time the rungs of the
ladder will be wreathed with thorns."
"It seems that yonder hermitage of yours is no home of joy, my
Father."
"Nay, Daughter. It is a home of grief and repentance. The joy lies
beyond. Such are the philosophy of life and the teachings of all
religion. Be sorrowful and afterward you will rejoice. Rejoice and
afterward you will be sorrowful."
"A sad philosophy, Prophet, and such lessons as slaves learn beneath
the whip."
"Aye, Ayesha, but one that must be endured, as, if they could speak,
Tenes and Ochus and Nectanebes would tell you to-day."
So he droned on who grew weak and senile, having become but the dry
shell of a man, whence the sap had withered, like to a sterile nut
indeed, from which, if it were sown, no shoot would spring. At length
wearying of his melancholy talk, I fell to the thought of that Fire of
Life raging in its eternal vigour beneath his hermitage, which, as he
swore, would give unending beauty, youth, glory, and dominion to him
who could find faith and courage to dare its terrors.
On the following day I accompanied Noot back to his hermitage for the
quiet of which he seemed to yearn, so much so indeed that even for my
sake whom he loved more than anything on earth and in whose fellowship
he delighted, he would not be separated from it for another hour.
It was a rough journey that we made borne in litters to the foot of
the great precipice which surrounds the plain of Kor like to a
measureless wall chiselled by Titans at the shaping of the world. We
climbed up a cleft in that wall and entered a hidden fold of rock,
invisible from below. Following this fold we came to the mouth of a
cave. Here I noted that food was set in plenty by the dwellers in this
land who revered Noot as a prophet and thus supplied him with his
sustenance. Here also were torches which were lit by those who
accompanied us to give us light upon our journey through the cave that
was long and rough. At length we came to its end to find before us a
terrible chasm. Thousands of feet above us was a line of blue sky and
beneath lay a gulf of darkness. Out into this chasm down which winds
raved and howled, ran a giant spur of rock of which the end was lost
in darkness. I looked at it doubtfully and said,
"Where then is your habitation, Noot, and by what road is it reached?"
"It lies yonder in the darkness, Daughter," he answered, smiling, "and
this is the road that those who would visit me must travel," and he
pointed to the spur of rock that trembled in the roaring gale, adding,
"To my feet it is familiar; moreover, I know that on it as elsewhere I
am protected from harm. But if you fear to walk such a path, turn back
while there is still time. Perhaps it would be better that you should
turn back."
Now I looked at the trembling rock and then I looked at Noot, my
Master.
"What," thought I to myself, "shall I, Ayesha, who dread neither man
nor devil, be afraid to follow where this frail old priest can lead?
Never will I blench from peril though in it lies my death."
So I stared him in the face and answered,
"To the task, Father, and swiftly, for here the wind blows chill. I go
first; Philo, follow me close."
Now Philo, who was my companion upon this adventure, glanced at me
with questioning eyes, but being a brave man and one who as a sailor
was accustomed to perilous heights, said nothing.
For a moment Noot paused, looking upward, perchance to pray or
perchance for other reasons. Then having asked Philo how long it was
to the time of sunset and been answered that it lacked between the
half and the fourth part of an hour before Ra sank behind the western
cliff, he started, walking boldly down the spur. I followed next, and
last came Philo.
Very terrible was that journey in the uncertain light which as we
progressed into the gulf grew ever fainter, till at last we were
wrapped about with gloom. Moreover, always the spur of rock narrowed,
and the raving gusts of wind which blew about that hideous gorge
buffeted us more fiercely.
Still we went on leaning our weight against them, and as we went a
kind of exaltation seized me, as it does always in moments of great
danger, so that my heart grew bold and feared no more. I would match
myself against these elemental strengths as I had matched myself
against those of hostile and desiring kings, and conquer them. Or
perchance it was the breath from the divine fire that burned below
that already had entered into me. I cannot say, but this I remember,
that before I had reached the point of that fearful rock I was filled
with a wild joy and could laugh at Philo crawling after me with
hesitating steps and breathing prayers now to Isis and now to the
Grecian gods that he had worshipped as a child.
At length we came to the end of that long needle which thrust itself
thus into the dark stuff of space, and as we did so all light went out
of the sky above, leaving us plunged in blackness. I seated myself
upon the throbbing point of rock, clinging to Philo who had done
likewise, and cried into the ear of Noot, kneeling at our side.
"What now? Show us and be swift, lest we should be thrown from this
place like stones from a sling."
"Hold fast and wait," answered Noot.
We did so, grasping the roughness of the rock with our hands. Then
suddenly a marvel happened, since from somewhere, I know not whence
and have never learned, a fierce red ray of light, cast doubtless by
the setting sun, struck us through some hole in the opposing cliffs.
Aye, it struck like a blazing sword, showing all things that could be
seen. They were these: ourselves crouched upon that point of rock;
infinite space beneath us, infinite space above reaching up to a
single star that shone upon the sky, and we three hemmed in by two
black precipices. Moreover, they showed, not four paces from the
point, a huge trembling stone that was joined to that fearsome spar by
a little bridge of wood laid from the one to the other by the hand of
man, which bridge rose and fell and rocked as the great stone trembled
on its farther side.
"Follow me swiftly before the light dies," cried Noot as he stepped
across this bridge and, reaching the crest of the trembling stone,
stood there like a ghost illumined with fire; like also to that figure
which I had seen watching from the brow of the Ethiopian's head when
we entered the harbour from the sea.
I obeyed and joined him, and after me came Philo.
By the last rays of that fleeting light we descended a rough stairway
cut on the farther side of the Trembling Stone and of a sudden found
ourselves in shelter. Light sprang up and I saw that it was held in
the hand of a dwarf, a curious, solemn dwarf. Whence this creature
came and who he was I do not know, but I think that he must have been
a spirit, some gnome from the Under-world appointed by the Powers
which ruled in that dark place to attend to the wants of the holy
Noot, their Master and mine.
This I noted at least, and so did Philo, that we could never see this
creature's face. Even when he moved about us, always it seemed to be
hidden either by shadows or something that hung in front of it like a
veil. Yet man, or gnome, or ghost, he was a good servant, since in
that hermit's cave, or rather caves, for there were several of them,
joined one to the other, all things were made ready. Thus a fire
burned, food was prepared upon a table, and in the inner caves beds
were spread, each in a little separate chamber.
The outer cave also was furnished in a fashion and I noted that in a
niche stood the small statue of Isis which I remembered well, since
wherever Noot my Master went in the past years when we journeyed
together, that statue went with him and now still it was his
companion. Indeed the tale was that it could speak and gave him
counsel in all hours of doubt and trouble, and that from this
enchanted thing he gathered his great wisdom. Whether or no this tale
were true, I do not know, since I never heard it utter words, nor
would Noot tell me when I asked him. Yet it is true that it was his
custom to pray to it; also that it was very ancient and valued by him
more than all the gold and jewels on the earth. Now it stood here, as
it had done in my Father's house at Ozal, as it had done at Philae in
his chamber, at Memphis, on the ship /Hapi/ and elsewhere when we
journeyed together throughout the world, and it was strange to me to
behold its familiar face again in this dreadful habitation.
"Eat," said Noot, "then sleep, for you are weary."
Philo and I did as he commanded. We ate, we laid ourselves down upon
the beds in the inner caves, and slept. The last thing that my eyes
saw before slumber closed them was Noot my Master, now become more of
a spirit than a man, kneeling in solemn prayer before the hallowed
effigy of Isis.
I know not for how long we slept, but it must have been many hours,
for when we woke it was to see that dwarf whose face was always
hidden, setting another meal upon the table in the outer cave. There,
too, by the lamplight, I perceived Noot still praying to the statue of
Isis as though he had never risen from his knees, which perchance he
had not done who no longer was as are other men. It was a strange
sight in that dreadful place and one that affrighted Philo, as he told
me, and left me not unmoved, who felt that here we stood upon the edge
of mortal things.
I went to him, and seeing me come, he rose from his knees to greet me,
asking me whether I had rested well.
"Neither well nor ill," I answered. "I slept, yet my sleep was full of
dreams, very strange dreams that boded I know not what. They told me
both of the past and of the future, and the burden of them was that I
seemed to see myself living alone from generation to generation in
caves as you do to-day."
"May the gods defend you from such a fate, Daughter," he answered as
though the thought disturbed him.
"They have not defended you, Father. Oh! how can you bear to dwell in
the darkness of this dreadful place round which the winds howl
eternally, companioned only by your thoughts and a dwarf who never
speaks? How did you find it, how came you here, and what put into your
mind the thought of choosing this burrow for a hermitage? Tell me
truly, who as yet, I think, have hidden half the truth even from me,
for I am devoured with wonder and would understand."
"Hearken, Ayesha. When first we met in Arabia, I was already very old,
was I not, I who now long have passed the tale of man's allotted days?
Before that time for many years I had been a head-priest and prophet
of Isis in Egypt, also the chief Magician of that land. Yet I was not
born an Egyptian nor did my eyes so much as look upon the Nile until I
had counted over sixty summers."
"Where then were you born, Father?"
"Here in Kor. I am the last descendant of the king-priests who ruled
in Kor before the great apostasy and the falling of the Sword of God.
To the holy men who were my fathers had descended their knowledge of
that secret of secrets whereof I have spoken to you, and ever it was
their custom when age took a hold of them to withdraw into this living
sepulchre and there as guardians of the Fire, to await the end. Also
under many oaths each of them passed on to his descendants the
knowledge of the secret.
"Thus, Daughter, it came into my keeping, for my grandsire told my
father, and my father whispered it to me. Then, while my grandsire
still lived, the goddess for her own ends of which now I think I see
the purpose, called me from this desolate land away to Egypt, there to
serve her as I have done. Again she called me to Arabia that there you
might be given into my keeping, as you were for certain years. A third
time she called me back to Kor, whither I came with Philo. Here I
found my grandsire dead and his son, my father, dead after him,
leaving the hermitage of the Watcher of the Fire untenanted. Therefore
setting Philo to command the savage tribes who dwell around the ruins
of haunted Kor, hither I came, as for generations my forbears have
done, to fill the office that they filled, and--to die."
"Forgetting me upon whose head you left a heavy burden, my Father in
Isis," I said bitterly.
"Nay, Ayesha, I forgot you not, who knew well that at the appointed
time we should meet once more, as meet we have. Always in my prayers I
have watched over you and many of your troubles and dangers have been
made known to me in dreams. It was in a dream that I heard you calling
for guidance, and sent the answer that was commanded. Aye, and before
that already I had despatched Philo to Egypt to bring you to me, as
also I was commanded. And now you stand here before me in my hermitage
and I tell you all these things because last night I learned, while I
prayed and you were lost in sleep, that we shall speak no more
together. My hour is at hand and since I have no child of my body, to
you, my child in the Spirit, I pass on the great secret as to you
already I have passed on my high office and my wisdom. When the breath
has left me, Ayesha, then to you will descend the guardianship of the
Fire, and here, doubtless, when age has overtaken you, you also will
end your days."
"Is it so?" I asked, dismayed, staring around me at the rocky walls
and listening to the tempest that raged eternally without.
"Aye, Ayesha, it is so, since that is the high duty laid upon your
soul, whereby it shall find wings to fly to Heaven. Know that no
Guardian of the Fire enters into the Fire. He watches it--no more--and
if it is threatened he seals it for ever from the sight of man.
Listen, I will tell you how," and leaning forward he whispered certain
words into my ear and showed me certain hidden things.
I heard, I saw, I bowed my head. Then I asked,
"And if the Guardian of the Fire entered into the Fire, what then,
Watcher of the Fire?"
"Daughter, I know not," he answered, horror-struck. "But then I think
the Fire would become /his/ guardian, a terrible guardian that at the
last would also be the destroyer of its false servant. More I cannot
tell, because though some have breathed its essence, none of them has
dared this deed."
"Two nights ago you told me, O Noot, that this fire gives youth and
beauty and uncounted days to those who bathe therein. If none has ever
entered it, how know you this?"
"Because it is so, Ayesha. Moreover, I did not say that none had ever
entered it. Perchance there are beings now known to the world as gods
or daemons, who, by accident rather than design, have tasted of this
cup. Perchance that shape you saw standing on the Ethiopian's head, in
some bygone age stood for an instant in its path. At least I repeat
that it is so. Believe or disbelieve me as you will, but ask me no
more, and above all do not venture to solve the mystery in your mortal
flesh."
"At least, Prophet, let me look upon that which I must guard," I said.
"Aye, you shall look," he answered. "It is for that reason that I have
brought you here, Priestess and Daughter of Wisdom, for having looked,
I do not think that you will desire to bathe in that red flame. Eat
now and make ready."
CHAPTER XX
THE COMING OF KALLIKRATES
Awhile later we left the cave, Noot, Philo, and I, each of us bearing
a lighted lamp. Clad in a dark cloak Noot led the way, his lamp in one
hand and in the other a long staff such as herdsmen use upon the
mountain side. Strange enough he seemed thus arrayed, with his thin,
transparent face, his eyes grown large and luminous from staring at
the darkness, and his long white beard showing like snow against the
black texture of the cloak; more of a spirit than a man indeed, or
like Charon leading shadows of the dead to that boat in which all--
aye, even I, Ayesha--must embark at last. Never shall I forget his
aspect as he searched for and found the stair that led to the rock-
strewn slope which stretched downward for a furlong or more to the
narrow passage at its end, through which presently we travelled into
the infernal halls beyond.
Great were those halls or caverns; so great that we light-bearers were
but as ants creeping through their vastness, so great that we could
see neither their walls nor roof.
We passed through two of them, our footfalls echoing in their fearful
silence, and came to a passage.
"Bide here," said Noot to Philo, "and await us, since it is not lawful
for you to look upon that which lies beyond. If perchance we should
not return within three hours so nearly as you can measure them, which
may happen since we go to where there is danger for mankind, win your
way back to the world and say that the gods have taken Noot the
Prophet and Ayesha the High-Priestess to be of their company."
So Philo, out of whose eyes all the Grecian joyousness had fled, sat
himself down upon a rock to wait, as I could see unwillingly enough,
for he loved this adventure little and was troubled for the safety of
me whom he loved much.
"Fear not," I whispered to him, "the hour is still far in which Ayesha
must fall a ripe fruit from the Tree of Life."
"I pray so, Child of Isis," he answered, "since surely we have entered
into Hades where I would not be left without so much as a fellow shade
to comfort me. Yet beware! for I know not whither that old ghost is
leading you," and he glanced at the tall shape of Noot striding into
the tunnel in which this cave ended, the lamp held above his head.
I followed after him, also holding my lamp aloft, though presently it
became needless since now the darkness of that hole grew alive with
rosy light. On like a swift shadow glided Noot, and I followed him
into the heart of the light, into a place, too, where thunder was
imprisoned, like winds in the bag of aeolus, aye, a place filled with
glories and with roarings, though whence these came I could not guess.
We entered yet another cavern, not so very large in size and carpeted
with fine white sand.
It was empty save for one thing. On the sand lay a withered shape, a
hideous little shape that once had been man or woman. Whose it was and
how it came there I never learned, since in the marvel of all that
followed and afterward I forgot to ask it of Noot, if indeed he could
have told me. Perchance some seeker of the Fire who lived a thousand
or ten thousand years before had perished of terror at the sight of
it, or perchance for his or her impiety that seeker had been
sacrificed by gods or men. Yet even then I thought it dreadful and
ominous that the first sight my eyes beheld in this terrible place
should be this shrivelled, long-haired lump of death lying there in
eternal solitude, while in front of and around it played the fierce
essences of Life eternal.
This cavern was filled with a light like to that of some tempestuous
Libyan dawn. Also it was filled with a muttering, thunderous sound,
such sound as is caused by the iron wheels of a thousand chariots
rushing to battle adown a rocky way. The light multiplied and was
stabbed through as though by many coloured levins flashing hither and
thither; the thunders gathered to an awful roar; those unearthly
chariots were rolling down upon us.
"To your knees," cried Noot in my ear. "The Fire comes, the god is
passing by!"
I knelt; my hand rested by chance upon that little shrivelled form,
and lo! at my touch it crumbled into dust. It had been, it was not;
the grinning twisted face was gone; nothing remained of it save a lock
or two of curling hair--surely it must have been a woman's hair. Then
the marvel happened. Before me appeared a turning column of glorious,
many-coloured brightness, that roared and bellowed like a million
maddened bulls. To my eyes it seemed to take the shape of a mighty
man, and in its glowing crest I saw green eyes of emerald like to
those of tigers, which eyes fixed themselves upon me. Arms it had
also, blood-red, splendid arms that stretched themselves towards me as
though to clasp me to that burning breast. It was terrible and yet it
was most beauteous. Never until I saw it had I known beauty, no not
even in the dawn or in the sunset, or in the sight of the wild shock
of battle.
This mighty god of Life seemed to call to the life within me, like a
king to his subject, like a master to his slave; I longed to lose
myself in that embrace of fire. Half I rose from my knees. Noot caught
me by the arm.
"Enter not!" he cried sternly, and again I sank down and hid my face
upon the sand.
How long I lay there I do not know, for exaltation seized me and made
my senses drunk, so that I could take no count of time. It may have
been for a minute or an hour; I say I do not know. When I looked up
again, the Fire had gone by, the god was hidden in his secret
sanctuary, though still the cavern glowed with rosy light.
Noot drew me from that place. Without we found Philo pale-lipped and
trembling, and together, slowly and with labour, we climbed our upward
course back to the hermitage beneath the swaying stone. Here we rested
in silence until at last Noot drew me aside and spoke.
"Ayesha," he said, "you have seen as it was decreed that you must see.
In that burning presence temptation took hold of you, so sharp a hold
that had I not been there, perchance you would have yielded,
forgetting my warnings and my prayers. Now I beseech you, guard the
Fire in the days to come, but look on it no more for ever, since
although in other matters you are so strong, in this I feel you frail.
While I live indeed never again shall you behold it with your eyes,
since first I will call upon the goddess to cut your thread of life
and take you to herself."
I bowed my head but made no answer, nor did he ask for any.
What happened then? Oh! I remember that we ate of food that was made
ready doubtless by the gnome-like dwarf whom I saw no more. After this
Noot looked from the door of his hermitage and called to us to come
swiftly, since the moment of sunset that brought with it the falling
ray was at hand and the bridge must be crossed and the narrowest of
the stone spur travelled ere it departed. Holding lighted lanterns in
our hands, he led us to the crest of the Trembling Stone whereon the
timbers of the bridge creaked and swayed. Here he clasped me in his
arms, blessing me and bidding me farewell, and though he said it not,
I was certain that in his mind, as at the moment I did in mine, he
believed that our spirits parted for ever upon this earth; yes,
believed it so surely that tears coursed down his pale cheeks.
Then suddenly the sword-like ray of fire stabbed the darkness and by
it I and Philo crossed the bridge and while it endured clambered
swiftly along the spur of which, I know not why, all fear had left me.
As that ray began to fade I turned my head to look my last on Noot.
There in the heart of it he stood, clothed as it were with fire, as
our faith tells are the messengers of Isis, Queen of Heaven. Yes,
there he stood with clasped hands and uplifted eyes like to one lost
in prayer. Then the ray went out like a blown lamp and the darkness
fell and swallowed him.
We gained the plain in safety and through the night were borne back to
Kor. The litter swayed; the slaves whose shoulders bent beneath the
pole sang their low, weird chant inviting to sleep, but its messengers
would not touch my eyelids with their rod of slumber. I could not
sleep whose soul burned with a fierce wakefulness. Oh! what was this
wonder that I had seen? The very fount of Life that, hidden from
mankind, burns in the womb of the world! But if it were this, why did
Noot speak of it as though it were a fount of Death? Why did he forbid
me to taste its cup? Perhaps because not Life but Death inhabited that
flame, as the little withered thing which had crumbled at my touch,
that once had been man or woman--woman, as I think--hinted to the
mind.
I knew not, but what I did know was that henceforth I was plighted to
this god of Fire and that in some day to come I must feel his burning
marriage kiss upon my brow.
When we came to Kor at the sunrise I beckoned Philo to me and made to
him the sign of silence, which being initiated, he knew well, so that
neither then nor at any other time should any word concerning these
mysteries pass his lips. Nor indeed could it do so as he had not
looked upon the greatest of them and only from afar had listened to
the thunder of the wheeling flame.
Then with a new energy, as though inspired by the breath of that fiery
god, I got me to my common daily task of rebuilding a perished faith
and people. Let that business be. Why should I speak of it, since
Destiny decreed that I must shape my work of water or of drifting
sand, not of rock or fired clay. Oh! Fate, why didst thou fool me
thus? Oh, Love the Destroyer, why didst thou make of me thy tool, and
with me thus bring Isis and her worship to the dust?
How long afterward was it that Kallikrates came? But a little while, I
think, though to one who has lived over two thousand years Time loses
its measure and significance.
I had sent Philo to the coast, purposing to prepare for the opening up
of trade and converse with the outer world. For in this rich place,
when its wild people were brought beneath my yoke, who already looked
upon me as one half divine, as the spirit of their ancient goddess
indeed, sent back to them from Heaven, I knew that we could produce
much that the teeming tribes of Libya would seek and buy. One night he
returned and was at once admitted to my presence. He told me of all
that he had done, or failed to do, and I praised him, then made the
signal of dismissal. He hesitated a while, then said,
"Child of Isis, be pleased to learn that I have not returned alone."
"That I know already, Philo, since there were many in your company."
"Be it understood, Child of Isis, that I have brought back with me
some with whom I did not set forth."
"Doubtless envoys from the peoples of the coast," I answered
indifferently.
"Nay," he replied, "travellers who have wandered long among those
peoples and whom I found shipwrecked and in a desperate state.
Travellers from Egypt."
"From Egypt! How many, Philo?"
"Nine in all, Prophetess, though the most of them are servants."
"Good, Philo. It will please me who must dwell so much alone to talk
with strangers from Egypt. They may have news of what passes on the
Nile. Give them hospitality such as we can command, and all they need,
and to-morrow, after the morning ceremonies, bring them to me.
To-night it is too late and doubtless they are weary."
Again he hesitated, then bowed, and went, leaving me wondering, for
there was that in his manner which I thought strange. Still, having
spoken my commands, I would not alter them. Yet as I laid me down to
sleep terror took hold of me; yes, a terror of I knew not what. I felt
that evil overshadowed me with its black wings; that I was about to
look upon something or someone I did not desire to see; that a doom
unknown had meshed me so that I lay helpless like a gladiator over
whom the net-thrower has cast his web and who lies struggling vainly,
the trident at his throat. Thus often does advancing peril cast its
cold shadow upon our mortal hearts which shiver at the touch of that
they feel but cannot discern.
I thought that perchance I was about to die, that already Death
gripped me with his clasp of ice; that in the dark recesses of the
chamber where I lay already some murderer fingered the dagger which
should pierce my breast, as well might happen in this wild land among
man-eating savages upon whose necks I had set my heel. Again I thought
that the spirits of the ancient dead whose place I occupied, were
hunting me, demanding that I should give them back their own, the rule
I had usurped.
Next I remembered Tenes transfixed by the sword of vengeance and
knowing now that mine was the hand that drove it, and Ochus Artaxerxes
when the poison began to burn his vitals as presently the fire would
burn his company, guessing at the last that I, the outraged priestess,
had brewed the cup and lit the fire. Yea, all these memories gathered
round me, rising like black clouds upon my sky of life and threatening
its eclipse, I who was terrified of I knew not what.
Lastly there came into my mind this tale of Philo's of shipwrecked
strangers whom he had rescued and led hither to be comforted. Who were
these strangers, I wondered? Assassins perchance, hid under a disguise
of want and desolation, men who sought to kill me and free my spirit
with their dagger-points, that it might no longer watch them here on
earth. Yet, and this was marvellous, showing how blind are the eyes of
our mortal flesh, never did the thought come to me that those
strangers might be Kallikrates the Greek and Amenartas, aforetime
Royal Princess of Egypt, she whom her desire and hate had made my foe.
I slept at last, though feverishly, only to wake when the high sun was
flooding the temple court with its fierce summer rays. I rose, and
since the day was one of ceremony and festival, was arrayed by my
women in the queenly garments of the high-priestess of Isis and hung
about with the sacred jewels and emblems of my rank.
Thus splendidly attired, I was led to my seat of state that I had
caused to be placed in the inmost pillared court before a wondrous
veiled statue of Truth standing on the world, which some god-gifted
artist of old Kor had fashioned in the forgotten days. Here we
celebrated our service with pomp and ritual, as once we were wont to
do in Egypt, though alas! the heirophants and the singers were few in
number. So was the outer congregation of half-converted worshippers
creeping back from the blackness of their barbarous rites to the holy
fellowship of the goddess.
The office was ended, the ringing of the /sistrum/ had ceased, the
blessing was given and with it the absolution of offences.
The worshippers had dispersed, save here and there one who remained to
pray. I too was about to depart when Philo came, saying, humbly and
hastily like one who desires to be done with an unwelcome task, that
those wanderers of whom he had spoken waited upon my pleasure.
"Admit them," I answered, wondering within myself upon whom I was
about to look. Malefactors perchance, I thought, who had fled from
justice into far lands, or merchants driven southward by the gales, or
humble seamen escaped from some sunk ship.
They came, a little knot of them, winding in and out between the great
columns of the ruined temple, advancing through the shadows. Idly I
noted, as they passed an open space where fell a stronger light, that
the two who walked first had a noble air, different from that of those
who followed after them. Then once more the shadows veiled them,
whence presently they emerged before me, seated beneath the statue,
and stood there, the sun's rays pouring down upon them.
I glanced at them and saw that they were man and woman, perfect man
and very beauteous woman. Then I lifted my head and looked them fully
in the face, only to sink back terrified, amazed, overwhelmed! Did I
dream? Had some mocking spirit tricked my eyes, or were those that
stood before me Kallikrates, the Grecian warrior-priest, and
Amenartas, the Royal Princess of Egypt?
Lifting my hand to hide my face, I studied them beneath its shade. Oh!
who could be mistaken? There before me, splendid in beauty as of old,
stood the god-like Kallikrates and at his side, dark, magnificent and
as yet untouched by time, or perchance protected from its ravages by
arts she learned from her side, Nectanebes the sorcerer, was the
imperial Amenartas. For a moment I kept silence, gathering up my
strength, ordering my spirit. Then still holding my hand before my
face, I spoke coldly as though without concern, saying,
"Whence come you, noble strangers? What are your names and why do you
seek the hospitality of the Queen of this ruined land of Kor?"
Bold as ever, it was Amenartas who answered me, not Kallikrates, who
stood staring about him as men do when they are uneasy in their minds
or wearied with ceremonies.
"We are wanderers, Priestess, in station neither mean nor great;
traders, to tell the truth, from the far north, who having suffered
shipwreck and many other things at length were rescued of this servant
of yours who led us here," and she pointed to Philo standing near by
with a stupid smile upon his face.
"By race we are Phoenicians called----" and she gave some name that I
forget. "As to the rest, being in extremity, for those over whom we
ruled rebelled against us and cast us out, we ask shelter from you
until Fortune smiles upon us again, who of late has dealt us naught
but frowns."
"It is granted, Lady. But tell me, what are you to each other? Brother
and sister, perchance?"
"Aye, Priestess, brother and sister, as you have rightly guessed,
seeing that our names are one name."
"That is strange, Lady; indeed I think that you throw mud upon your
father or your mother, or both, since how could these have begotten
one dark, a high-born daughter of the Nile, and another fair as Apollo
and having Grecian Apollo's face and mien? Again, how comes it that
the sister of a Phoenician merchant binds up her locks with the circlet
of Egyptian royalty?" And I pointed to the uraeus-twisted band of gold
upon her brow.
"Blood plays strange tricks, Priestess, searching out now the likeness
of one ancestor, and now of another, so that ofttimes one child is
born dark and the other fair. As for the ornament, I bought it in
trade from an Arab merchant, not knowing whence it came or its
significance," she began to answer unabashed, when of a sudden
Kallikrates checked her, muttering,
"Have done!" Then addressing me, he said,
"O Queen and Priestess, take no heed of this lady's words, since of
late, because of our misfortunes, we have been forced to tell many
strange tales according to the conditions of the hour. We are not
Phoenicians born of one House; we are by blood Greek and Egyptian, and
by relation not brother and sister, but man and wife."
Now when I heard these words my heart stood still who hoped that Isis
and their oaths might have held this pair apart. Yet I answered
calmly,
"Is it so, Wanderer? Tell me then, of what faith are you twain and by
whom were you wed? Did some minister of Zeus join your hands, or did
you stand together before Hathor's altars?"
Then while he searched for some answer that he could not find, I went
on, laughing a little,
"Perchance, O noble pair, you were not wed at all. Perchance you are
not husband and wife but only lover and lover mated after Nature's
fashion!"
He hung his head, confused, and even the bold eyes of Amenartas were
troubled.
Now I could bear no more.
"O Grecian Kallikrates," I said, "aforetime captain of Pharaoh's
guard, aforetime priest of Isis, and O Amenartas, daughter of
Nectanebes, by birth Royal Prince of Egypt, why do you waste words,
hoping to fool one who cannot be deceived? Doubtless you have bribed
yonder Philo to hide the truth, as once you bribed him to hide a
certain lady upon his ship and to set the two of you ashore upon a
certain island."
"If so, he has betrayed us," stammered Kallikrates, the red blood
rising to his brow.
"Nay, he has not betrayed you, being one who ever keeps faith with
those who pay him well. Is it not so, Philo my servant?"
I waited for an answer, but none came, for Philo had gone. Then I
continued,
"Nay, Philo did not betray you, nor was it needed. Royal Amenartas,
whence had you that scarab ring upon your hand?"
"It was my lord's gift to me," she answered.
"Then tell me, Kallikrates, whence had you the ring, also if there be
graven on its bezel in the Egyptian writing, signs that mean 'Royal
Son of the Sun'?"
"Those signs are cut upon the ring, O Queen, which in bygone years was
given to me as a talisman by a certain divine priestess whom I saved
in battle, that its virtues might recover me of wounds which I
received in the battle. This, as I was told afterward, it had the
power to do because that ring was blessed, having been fashioned like
to one which Isis the Mother set as her love gift upon the hand of
dead Osiris ere she breathed his soul into him again. Or perchance it
was the very same that Osiris left upon the earth when he passed to
Heaven; I know not."
Thus he spoke, stumbling at the words like an ill-bred mule upon a
stony path till, wearying of the tale, I broke in,
"Therefore, O Kallikrates, you in your turn gave the enchanted amulet
to a woman you desired, or who desired you, hoping that its virtues
might consecrate your unhallowed union. O priest forsworn, how did you
dare this sacrilege--to set upon your lover's hand the ring, the very
ring of Isis that once great Khaemuas wore, given to you by the
Prophetess of Isis to lift you from the gates of death."
Then bending forward so that the shadow of the statue behind no longer
hid me, I uncovered my face and looked him in the eyes.
"I thought it!" he said, "though who could have dreamed that here in
this ruin----? It is the Oracle and the Prophetess. It is the Child of
Isis, the Daughter of Wisdom herself whose voice I knew again through
all her feigning," and he fell to the ground so that his brow was
pressed upon its stones, muttering,
"Slay me, Queen, and have done, but spare this lady and send her back
to her own land, since the sin is mine, not hers, who was no
priestess."
Now Amenartas stared at me with her bold eyes, then cried with a hard
laugh,
"Be not so sure, my Lord, for this is scarcely possible. Well do I
remember looking upon her who was called /Isis-come-to-Earth/ in the
bygone days, especially at a certain feast that Pharaoh gave when she
unveiled to show herself to Tenes, King of Sidon, who afterward took
her as his slave. But that seeress was a very fair woman, although
perchance even then somewhat faded, or so I who but a little while
before had bade farewell to childhood, judged of her. Therefore this
ruler of ruins can scarcely be the same, seeing that none could name
her fair. Look, she is old and withered, her neck has fallen in, her
shape is flattened.
"The seeress I remember had a lovely mouth of coral, but this lady's
lips are thin and pale; also she had large and beauteous eyes, but
those of this lady are small and almost colourless. Moreover, they are
ringed beneath with lines of black, such as are common to aged virgin
priestesses who have never known the love of man, though of it,
perchance, their holy souls still dream even in the midst of their
customary, bead-checked prayers, while, like those of slaves, their
knees harden upon the stones.
"Nay, my Lord, although time works strange changes in those who have
passed the meridian of their days, this priestess who hides her gray
hairs beneath the vulture cap of her persuasion can scarcely be the
same as the glowing pythoness upon whom once we looked in Pharaoh's
halls and who, as I recall, then looked much on you."
Now I listened to this vulgar venom, the common outpouring of a small-
natured, jealous heart, and smiled. Yet it is true, for in these lines
I write nothing which is not the truth, that some of those poisoned
shafts went home. I knew well that all the beauty that once I had was
no longer mine; that the passing of the years, that care and
abstinence and the turning of my heart from things mortal to those
divine, added to the weight of rule and wisdom and avengement which
Destiny had laid upon my brow, had robbed me of my bloom and that
imperial loveliness which once enthralled the world. Also it was true
that Amenartas was still a child when I was a woman grown and
therefore had Nature's vantage of me, which indeed must increase from
moon to moon.
Still I smiled, and as I smiled a great thought smote me, sowing a
seed of daring in the kind soil of my breast where thenceforth it was
doomed to grow, to blossom, and in an unborn hour of fulfilment to
bear its fearful fruit. Oh! if I have sinned against high Heaven and
the commands of its minister, my guide, the holy Noot, let the
recording gods remember that it was the whip of this woman's bitter
tongue which drove me to the deed.
Now very gently I spoke, saying,
"Rise, Kallikrates, such words as you have heard spoken of one who
once was set above you in her office can scarcely be pleasing to your
ears, nor will I answer them. I know well that in them there is
something of the truth and I am proud that it has been granted to me
to make sacrifice to the Queen of Heaven whom I adore of such small
gifts of the flesh and comeliness as once were mine. It is but another
offering which I heap upon her altar, one of many.
"Yet, Kallikrates, though as I think you can on longer bow the knee
before that Majesty as once you did, I pray you, if you can, to hold
this lady's lips from pouring scorn upon her, as she does upon me, her
priestess. I pray you to bring it to her memory that once, clad in her
veil of Isis, she also worshipped at that shrine, aye, that in a time
of peril, often there, she and you and I have sent up our pure
petitions, though not in the 'customary bead-checked prayers' of which
she speaks. Yes, bring it to her memory that though the temple of
Memphis has been given to the flames, Mother Isis hears and watches
not in Egypt, but in Heaven, and that though she will be slow to
wrath, yet she still can smite. Now, Kallikrates, go rest you, taking
your love with you, and afterward we will talk alone since, although I
can forgive, I am not minded to be stoned with such words as angry
women of the people throw at their rivals in the marketplace."
CHAPTER XXI
THE TRUTH AND THE TEMPTATION
Not that day but on the morrow Kallikrates asked audience of me.
Learning that he was alone, I received him in my private chamber and
bade him be seated. He obeyed, and for awhile I watched him, the light
from the window-place falling upon his golden head and upon his
shining armour, battered with storm and war. For now he was clad in
his soldier's garb, perchance the very same that years ago he had worn
on board the /Hapi/, and thus attired looked like a king of men.
"The lady Amenartas is somewhat sick after all our journeyings," he
said, "I think that the disorder which is common on the coast lands
has fallen upon her, since her face is flushed and her hands are hot.
Therefore she cannot await upon you, Prophetess. Yet she bids me thank
you for your hospitality, and say that she asks your pardon for any
bitter words she may have spoken yesterday, since these sprang, not
from her heart, but from a fever burning in her blood."
"It is granted. I know this sickness though myself I have been
protected from it, and will send her medicine and with it a skilled
woman to wait upon her. Bid her not to fear; it is seldom dangerous.
Now, my guest Kallikrates, if it pleases you, let me hear your story;
you must have much to tell since we parted in the sanctuary at
Memphis. Then, you will remember, your purpose was to accompany the
holy Noot upon his mission, because you thought it best for reasons of
your own to depart from Memphis for a while. Yet I think it was in
your mind to go alone, not accompanied by that royal lady who is your
companion."
"This is true, Prophetess," he answered heavily, "nor did I know that
the lady of whom you speak was aboard the /Hapi/ until, to escape
capture at the hands of the Persians, we had fled from the Nile out
toward the open sea."
"I understand, Kallikrates, nor can it be denied that Fate dealt
hardly, or perchance I should say kindly, with you when it caused the
lady Amenartas to embark in error upon the ship /Hapi/, which sailed
down Nile, instead of that of her father, Nectanebes, which set its
course for Thebes and Ethiopia."
"Mock me not, Child of Wisdom. As the lady Amenartas would tell you to
your face, she knew well enough upon what ship she sailed, though I
knew nothing who believed that I had said farewell to her for ever.
Aye, abandoning her hope of royalty and all else, and taking every
risk, she embarked upon the /Hapi/, setting some other woman tricked
out to her likeness to fill her place awhile among the company of
Nectanebes."
"That at least was bold, and I love courage, Kallikrates. Yet--what
was her purpose?"
"Is that a question that you should ask me, Lady, who know well that
great-hearted women will dare much for love?"
"Whether I should ask or not, at least I have the answer to my
question, Kallikrates. Of a truth you should love and honour one who
for your sake abandoned all to win what she thought more than all,
even at the cost of her own shame and the ruin of your soul."
"I do love and honour her," he answered hoarsely. "When she was still
a child I loved her and because of that love I slew my brother,
believing that on reaching womanhood she had come to favour him,
which, it seems, she did only to draw me closer to her."
"It would appear, Kallikrates, that this lady brings no good fortune
to your race, since first she works the death of one of you, making a
murderer of his own brother, and then of that brother fashions an
apostate to his faith, yea, a traitor accursed from God and man."
"It is so," he said humbly. "Yet she loves me much, so much that
whether I will it or not, I must love her, since if the woman loves
enough what can the man do but follow on the path she leads? Tell me,
Prophetess, you who are wise, had you been a man and sat in my place
there upon the ship /Hapi/, which is a narrow prison, what would you
have done, being a man I say--as I am?"
"Perhaps just what you did, Kallikrates, and therefore have become
accursed, as you are, Kallikrates, seeing that the lady was sweet and
loving, and that man must remain man however great the oaths he has
sworn to goddesses who do not throw their arms about him or kiss him
on the lips."
"Once I thought that a goddess did kiss me on the lips, Oracle of
Isis, and the memory of that kiss is sweet and holy."
"Is it so?" I answered. "Well, since, you are no more of our
communion, I may tell you now that in the shrine at Philae /I/ played
the part of the goddess and gave that ceremonial kiss."
Now he stared at me, reddening, then muttered,
"Always I guessed it who could not quite believe that a goddess would
kiss so sweetly," and again he started like one who would ask a
question that his lips do not dare to frame.
I remained silent, watching him, till presently he broke out,
"You tell me that I am accursed, Priestess. Tell me also why Isis is
so wrath with me?"
"Did you not swear yourself to her alone and break your oath,
Kallikrates? Do you not know that if women can be jealous, goddesses
who are set far above them can be more greatly so of those who are
bound to them in the mystic marriage? Have you not heard that to turn
from them to a daughter of man is to offer them the most terrible of
all insults?"
"Isis herself was wed to Osiris, Prophetess, and I have heard of
priests and priestesses who served her who were also wed."
"Perchance, Kallikrates, after absolution given by one upon whom
authority is conferred to strain vows for some high end. But who gave
you authority to marry, you, who indeed are not married but only a
woman's lover? Did you mayhap seek it from the holy Noot aboard the
ship /Hapi/?"
"Nay," he answered, "that thought never came to me. Or if it came I
believed that he would but heap curses upon me, or mayhap call down
the vengeance of Isis upon another. You have heard, Prophetess, of
what fate sometimes awaits those who tempt the feet of priests or
priestesses from the strait path of their vows."
"Aye, Kallikrates, they die by fire, or they starve, or they perish
shut up in some narrow, airless hole; each worship works its own
vengeance for that unmeasured crime. Yet you were foolish not to make
your prayer of Noot, by whom alone it could be granted, since who
knows what he would have answered."
"Is it too late?" he asked eagerly. "For every sin there is
forgiveness, why not for mine? Only who could grant it; since now I
know not where to look for Noot, if indeed he lives."
"For every sin there is forgiveness, Kallikrates, but only at a price.
First the sin itself must be laid upon the altar as a sacrifice. For
dead sins there may be forgiveness; for those that live and are
continued there is none, but only stripe added to stripe and remorse
piled upon remorse. As for Noot it chances that he does live and not
so far away. Would you lay your case before him and hear his
judgment?"
"I do not know," he answered slowly. "Hearken, Child of Wisdom. I am
in a strange strait. I love this lady with my body and am bound to
her, but it is not so with my spirit. Our souls, I think, are far
apart. Oh! bear me witness that my heart is set on higher things; it
would sail into far seas unvisited of man, but always there is this
anchor of the flesh chaining it to its native shore. Amenartas does
not think thus, she loves to lie bound in life's pleasant harbour, or
to wander to its green banks, wafted thither by the fitful breath of
common things, there to deck her brow with the wreath of passion.
"'Let Heaven be!' she says, 'here is the happy earth beneath our feet,
and round us murmur the waters of delight and I am very beautiful and
I love you well. If there be gods and they are vengeful, at least
their hour is not yet. This moment is ours to enjoy and to our lips it
holds a glorious cup. If all the wine be drunk and the cup is
shattered, at least there will remain with us their memories. What are
these gods whom you seek so madly? What do they give to man save many
curses--deaths and separations, sicknesses and sorrows, adding to
these promises of woe to follow when they have worked their worst on
earth? Are there any gods save those that man fashions from his own
terrors? man who will not be content with Nature's food, but needs
must sour it with an alien poison, and even when the sun shines round
him, shivers in some cold shadow that superstition casts upon his
heart.'
"Thus she reasons, and such ever were her arguments."
"Tell me, Kallikrates, has any child been born to you?"
"Aye, one, a very lovely child; he died of hardships that caused his
mother's milk to fail."
"And when the royal Amenartas looked upon him dead, did she still
reason in this fashion, saying that there are no gods and for man
there is no hope beyond the grave?"
"Not altogether, since she cursed the gods, and who curse that in
which they do not believe? Also I remember that she wept and prayed
those gods to give him back to her while his little heart still beat,
and like a moth new-crept from its chrysalis, he yet hung to the edge
of the world, drying his soul's crinkled wings in the dawning lights
of Heaven. But afterward she forgot and made sacrifice to her familiar
Spirit, asking it to send her another child, which prayer she tells me
is in the way of fulfilment."
"So Amenartas practices magic like her father Nectanebes?"
"Aye, Lady, and it would seem not without avail, though of this matter
of dealing with daemons I neither know nor want to know anything. I
think it comes to her with her Egyptian blood, also that the Pharaoh
taught her these arts in her childhood, and what is learnt then is
never quite forgotten. At least I know that when we have been in
trouble or in danger during our long wanderings, with secret rites
upon which I do not pry, she calls upon some Familiar and that
thereafter, in this way or in that, our pathway has been straightened.
Indeed she did this just before Philo found us starving."
"As the path of your babe was straightened from this world to the
next, Kallikrates; as the devious path of Pharaoh Nectabenes was
straightened to a road which led from the throne of Egypt--but pray
the lady Amenartas to ask of her daemon whither it led, since here my
wisdom fails me and I am not sure. Well, we have spoken long and so
stands the case, one that might puzzle Thoth himself. Is it your
pleasure, Kallikrates, to visit the divine Noot and take his counsel
upon all these matters? I think that he alone upon the earth can give
you guidance in them. Yet do as you will."
Kallikrates thought a while brooding, then he answered,
"Yes, it is my pleasure. When Amenartas is recovered of her sickness,
we will go."
"The holy Noot is very ancient and the royal Amenartas may be sick for
a long while. Therefore might it be wise to go at once, Kallikrates."
"Nay, Prophetess, I cannot. Amenartas has strange fancies and will not
be left alone; she thinks that she may be poisoned; indeed that
already she has tasted poison."
"Then let her make richer sacrifices to her daemon and pray him to
protect her. Certainly they will not be without avail since I can
swear that here in Kor no poison shall pass her lips, nor any harm
come to her--save perchance from those gods whom she denies. Farewell,
Kallikrates."
He bowed to me humbly and turned to go, then after a step or two came
back and said,
"The gods! The gods! who for you and me in their sum are one god,
Isis, Queen of Heaven. Tell me now, I pray you that are named Wisdom's
Daughter, who and what is Isis?"
I thought a while since the question was a great one, a problem that
as yet I had never tried to solve in words. Then I answered,
"By my soul I do not know. East and west and north and south, men in
their millions worship this god or that. Yet is there one among them
who save in dreams or ecstasies has ever seen his god, or if he tries
to fashion him out before his mortal eyes, can do more than carve some
effigy of wood or stone?"
Then I pointed to the veiled statue of Truth behind me, saying,
"Lo! there is Isis, a beauteous thing with a hidden face ruling o'er
the world. She is one of Divinity's thousand forms. Aye, she is its
essence, frozen to the shape we know in this world's icy air, and
having a countenance chiselled differently from age to age by the
changeful thought of man. She lives in every soul, yet in no two souls
is she the same. She is not, yet eternally she is. Invisible,
intangible; ever pursued and ever fleeing; never seen and never
handled, yet she answers prayer and her throne is not in the high
heavens but in the heart of every creature that draws the breath of
life. One day we shall behold her and not know her. Yet she will know
us. Such is Isis: formless, yet in every form; dead, yet living in all
that breathes; a priest-bred phantasy, yet the one great truth."
"If Isis be thus, what of the world's other gods?"
"They all are Isis and Isis is them all. The thousand gods men worship
are but one god wearing many faces. Or rather they are two gods, the
god of good and the god of evil; Horus and Typhon who war continually
for the souls of things created by that Divine, unseen, unknown yet
eternally existent, who reigns beyond the stars alone in fearful glory
and from his nameless habitation looks down both on gods and men, the
puppets of his hands; on the rolling worlds that bear them, on the
seas of space between and on the infusing spirit whose operation is
the breath of life. So it was in the beginning, is now and shall be
eternally. At least, Kallikrates, thus I have been taught by the
wisdom of Noot my Master, and following his path, thus my searching
soul has learned. Again farewell."
He looked at me muttering,
"Child of Isis, oh! well-named Child of Isis, and Wisdom's Daughter!"
and there was awe in his eyes and voice.
Now as ever he is afraid of me, I thought to myself, and how can a man
come to love that of which he is afraid, since love and fear are
opposites and there is no bridge between them. Oh! why did I speak to
him of these high things which as yet his spirit can scarce weigh or
understand? Perhaps because I am so lonely and having naught into
which I can pour my mind, no vase of gold and alabaster, my deep
o'erflowing thought must fill the first coarse cup of clay that chance
offers to my hand, like to the storing of priceless wine in some tarry
bottle which it will burst.
Surely I should learn a lesson from yonder Amenartas, who knows well
how to deal with such a one as he; one who still stands at thought's
beginnings, looking dismayed at the steep upward path studded with
sharp stones, wreathed in cruel thorns, strewn with quicksands and
with pitfalls, and bordered by precipices from whose gulfs there is no
return, that path which his feet long to tread yet dare not, lacking
any guide.
She leads him by a different road, the road of mortal passion, bidding
him to cease from staring at the stars; bidding him weave crowns of
its heavy-scented flowers to set upon her brow and his. She prattles
to him of daily doings, of the joy of yesterday and the promise of
to-morrow, aye, even of the food he eats. And all the time she twists
the spells her father taught her to strong ropes of charm, purposing
by these to tie him to her everlastingly. Aye, like a gilded spider,
that black-browed, bounteous-breasted witch meshes him in her magic
web, binding him fast and yet more fast, till at length he lies there
staring at her stirless as a mummy in its wrappings.
Thus I mused, clothing my musings finely yet knowing in my heart that
what prompted them was the vilest of all causes and the most common,
naught indeed but the jealousy of one woman of another. For now I knew
the truth, it could no more be hidden, no longer could I blind my
eyes, for it had come home to me while he told me his sad story. I
loved this man; yes, and had always loved him since first I looked
upon him far away at Philae, or certainly since, veiled in the
wrappings of the goddess, I had yielded to Nature's promptings and
kissed him upon the lips.
Oh! I had beaten down that truth, I had buried it deep, but now it
arose like a ghost from the grave and frightened me with its stern,
immortal eyes. I loved this man and must always love him and no other,
and he--he feared yet adored me, as some high spirit is adored at its
appearing--but love me he did not who was set so far above him.
Yes, I was jealous, if the great can be truly jealous of that which is
small, for though we were wide apart as continent from continent, yet
we both were women desirous of one man. With my spirit I was not
jealous, for that I knew must conquer in the end, being so strong, so
armoured against all the shafts of mortal change. Yet with my flesh I
was jealous. He told me Amenartas had borne a son to him; that she
hoped to bear another son, and--I too yearned to be the mother of his
son. For is it not true that by a fixed unchanging law, whereas the
man loves the woman for herself, the woman loves the man most of all
because he may become the father of her child, and thus by the marvel
of creation, even in the dust preserve her from perpetual death?
So, so, let me think. I loved this man and would take him for myself
and would lift him up and would make him my equal, if that could ever
be, and would teach him glorious things, and would show him the secret
light that burned within my heart, and would guide him onward by the
rays of my own peculiar star. How could it be brought about? Yonder
woman, wrapped round with the twice-dipped Tyrian purple of kings,
which purple, be it admitted, she wore well enough although now she
lacked a throne whereon to drape it, thought in her folly that I had
poisoned or would poison her. Yes, she knew Ayesha so little that she
believed that like a Persian eunuch she would stoop to call deadly
venom to her aid and thereby rid her of a rival. Never! If I could not
win by my own strength in a fair fight for favour, then let me fail,
who deserved defeat. Were her life so utterly in my hands that I could
destroy it with a wish, that wish would never form itself within my
mind, and certainly never shape itself to deeds.
What then could be done? She was right. I began to grow old; Time's
acid was gnawing at me so that my beauty was no more what it had been.
Aye, I grew spare and old, while on her still shone the full glory of
her womanhood. /If I would conquer I must cease from growing old!/
The Fire of Life! Ah! that Fire of Life which gave, it was said, the
gift of undying days and of perfect youth and loveliness such as
Aphrodite herself might envy. Who said so? Noot the Master who knew
all things. Yet Noot had never entered into that fire, therefore how
did he know, unless it were by revelation? At least he had forbidden
me to taste its cup, perhaps because he was sure that it would slay me
whom he desired to be his successor and to establish here a great
kingdom whereof the people should accept Isis as their god.
Still the story might be true, for otherwise why did Noot sit in that
melancholy hermitage watching the pathway to the Fire? There had been
other tales of the same sort told in the world. Thus the old Chaldean
legend spoke of a Tree of Life that grew in a certain garden whence
the parents of mankind were driven lest they should eat of it and
become immortal, which legend was expounded to me more fully by the
Jewish rabbis in Jerusalem, and afterward by Holly the learned man.
Therefore it seemed that there was a Tree of Life, or a Fire of Life,
jealously guarded of the gods lest the children of men should become
their equals. And I, I knew where that Tree grew, or rather where that
Fire burned. Yet Noot forbade it to me, and could I disobey Noot my
Master, Noot the half divine? Well, Noot was very old and near his
end, and when he died, I, by his own appointment, should be the
guardian of the Fire, and may not a guardian taste of that he guards?
The gods decreed otherwise, he said. Mayhap, but what if in this
matter where I had so much to gain, I chose to match myself against
the gods? If the gods give knowledge, can they be wrath with those who
use it? Yet if they are wrath--well, let them be wrath and set their
worst against my best. Sometimes I grew weary of the gods and all the
fantastical decrees which they--or their priests--heaped upon the
heads of the sufferers of this earth. Were not life's curse and
death's doom enough to satisfy their appetites, that they must load
the toilful days between with so much of the lead of misery, denying
this, denying that; strowing the path of men with spikes and crowning
their heads with thorns?
If Noot's tale were true, what then? I should enter the Fire, I should
emerge ever-glorious, beauteous beyond imagining, and ever young,
having left death far behind me. I should need but to wait a while
until Amenartas died, and when she was dead, or having grown weary of
dull life in an ancient place, had departed to seek some other. Nay,
for then in the first case Kallikrates also would be dead or ancient,
and in the second, certainly she would take him with her.
Ah! now I had it; if I entered the Fire and came forth unharmed,
Kallikrates must enter it after me, for then we should be fitly mated,
even if we must wait until a little pinch of the sand of time had run
out from between our fingers. Yet supposing that Amenartas chose to
enter it also, as being so fond of magic and so determined to cling to
that which she had won, perchance she might do, would my case be
bettered? The play would be set upon a larger stage, that is all.
Well, should I not be the Guardian of the Fire and would it not be in
my hand to determine who should taste or who should be denied its
glories? Let that matter decide itself when the hour came, since the
decision would be such as I and not as Amenartas willed.
Here then was my plan. And yet--one thought more. What if the Fire
slew? If so, had I found life so sweet that I should be afraid to die,
as in any case within some few years die I must? Let me take my chance
of death who was ready to fade away into a land where Kallikrates and
Amenartas and all earthly miseries and all baulked desires and
ambitions, and all hopes and fears and sufferings must be forgot. Only
would they be forgot? Perchance there they might be remembered and
pierce the soul eternally with an even keener edge. Noot believed that
we were made of an immortal stuff, and so at heart did I. It must be
risked. What is life but a long risk, and why should we fear to add to
its tremendous count? I at least did not fear.
So all was summed up and balanced. Yet from my reckoning I left out
the largest charge, that which Fate makes against those who play at
dice with the Unknown. The gods may smile at courage and pass a
venture by, but who can tell how blind Fate will avenge the forcing of
his rule decreed and the rape of knowledge from his secret store?
This problem I forgot, I who was doomed to learn its answer.
CHAPTER XXII
BEWARE!
The days went by and it was not long before Amenartas recovered from
her sickness, long at least before she would appear out of the
lodging, the best at our command, which had been given to her. It was
an ancient, ruined house near to the temple, that doubtless once had
been a splendid place inhabited by forgotten nobles of old Kor. There
were gardens round it, or rather what had been gardens, for now these
were much overgrown, and in their shelter Amenartas hid herself and
wandered, never leaving them to visit me.
Yet Kallikrates came often, though being unshriven and thrust out of
our community by his own act, he did not share in the worship of the
goddess. Often I would see him as our procession wound in and out of
the columns of the great unroofed temple hall, standing afar off and
gazing at it wistfully. Aye, and once when it passed near to him, I
saw too, that there were tears upon his face, noting which my heart
sorrowed for him who was an outcast for a woman's sake.
When these ceremonies were ended he would visit me in my chambers
where we talked long and of many things. I asked him why the Princess
Amenartas, who it seemed was recovered of her fever since now she
could wander in her garden ground, laid no offering on the altar of
the goddess. He answered,
"Because she will have naught to do with the gods of Egypt who, she
says, if they are at all, have ever been the enemies of her House and
have dragged her father, the Pharaoh Nectanebes, from his throne and
hurled him forth, a discrowned fugitive, to perish amidst strangers."
"Upon those who follow after spells and affront the gods, the gods
will be avenged, Kallikrates. For every sin there is forgiveness, save
for that of the denial of Divinity, and of the setting of Evil in its
place to be propitiated by the arts of sorcerers. Moreover, did not
this Nectanebes offer deadly insult to the Queen of Heaven when he
gave me, her servant and seeress, to be a slave to Tenes, the
worshipper of her worst of foes, Baal and Ashtoreth and Moloch, that
Tenes from whose grip you helped to save me, Kallikrates?"
"It is so," he answered sadly.
"And now," I went on, "the daughter follows in the father's steps. Oh!
I am sure that yonder she spells out her charms, aiming her
enchantments at my heart, whence they fall back harmless, as the bone-
tipped arrows of wild men fall from a shield of Syrian bronze."
He hung his head who knew well that my words were true, and muttered,
"Alas! she loves you not, Lady, who from the first hour that she set
eyes upon you, as often she has told me, feared and hated you,
because, she says, her spirit warns and has ever warned her that you
will bring disaster upon her head and call up Death to keep her
company."
"At least he would be a better guest, Kallikrates, than the daemon
that, like her father, she harbours in her breast. Oh! unhappy man, my
heart bleeds for you, who are linked to this poisoned loveliness that
divorces you from hope and charity; to this royal infidel who in the
end will bind your spirit's wings and drag you down into her own
darkness. For your soul's sake I pray you, Kallikrates, seek out the
holy Noot, confess your sins and hear his counsel, since this matter
is beyond my strength and I have none to give. Seek him soon, nay, at
once, ere perchance it be too late, for I learn that he grows feeble."
"That is my great desire, Priestess, yet how can I, who know not where
to find him?"
"I will be your guide, Kallikrates. When the sun rises on the second
day from now we will march to visit Noot in his secret dwelling."
"I will be ready," he answered and left me.
On the morrow he came again and we spoke together of the state of Kor
and of my plans for bettering it; also of certain savages who
threatened us from without, man-eating tribes that it seemed were
descended from the apostates who rejecting the worship of Truth or
Lulala, as Isis was named by them in those times, had adopted that of
a devil that, as they declared, inhabited the sun or some ill-omened
star.
Kallikrates listened, he who at bottom was ever a soldier, for the
tale awoke all his general's craft and courage. As a great captain
does, he balanced the reasons for or against defence, for or against
attack. He questioned me as to the numbers of my people and of their
foes, as to their arms, and many other matters that have to do with
war. Then having learned all that I could tell him, he set out the
plan which he judged to be the best in our conditions, talking of it
long and eagerly, he who for a while had forgot his woes. I listened
to him, watching his bright and splendid face which seemed as that of
the Sun-god of the Greeks. Speaking a word here and a word there, I
listened, thinking to myself the while that if only he and I, he with
his skill and courage and I with my wisdom, could guide the destines
of Kor, before our day was done we would drive them like the chariots
of a conquering king from Egypt's borders to these of the uttermost
southern seas, setting nation after nation beneath our feet, and
building up such an empire as Libya had never known.
What had I dreamed? To Egypt's borders? Why should we stop at her
borders? Why should we not hurl forth the foul Persian swarms and be
crowned monarchs of the world at Susa and at Thebes? Yet it would take
time, and life is short, and yonder, not so far away, burned the Fire
of Immortality, and I, I held the key to its prison house, or soon
should hold it when Noot had sought his rest. Almost these burning
thoughts, these high ambitions, in whose fulfilment lay the seeds of
peace attained through war and the promise of the welfare of the
earth, burst from my lips in a torrent of hot words which I knew well
would set his soul aflame. But I, Ayesha, refrained myself from
myself, I wrapped myself in silence, I said to myself, "Wait, wait,
the ripe hour has not dawned."
He rose to depart, then turned and said,
"At the sunrise I will be here, or rather," he added doubtfully, "we
will be here, since Amenartas desires to accompany us upon this
journey to visit the holy Noot."
"By whom I trust she will be well received, seeing the manner in which
she parted from him upon the ship /Hapi/. Well, so be it; I rejoice to
learn that the royal Amenartas again finds herself prepared to travel.
Yet remind her, Kallikrates, that the road we go is rough and
dangerous."
"She shall be told, yet it will serve little, since who can turn
Amenartas from her ends? Not I, be sure; nor could her father before
me, nor any living man."
"Nay, nor any god, Kallikrates, since the ends she follows are those
of neither man nor god, but of something that stands beyond them both,
as was the case of Pharaoh Nectanebes who begot her. Each of us shoots
at his chosen mark, Kallikrates, you at yours, I at mine, and
Amenartas at her own; therefore what right have we to judge of one
another's archery? Let her come to visit Noot and I pray that she may
return the happier."
Next morning ere the dawn I stood at the temple porch awaiting Philo
and the litters. Came Amenartas cloaked heavily, for the air was cold,
yet splendid even in those wrappings.
"Greeting, Wisdom's Child," she said, bowing in her courtlike fashion.
"I learn that you and my husband would make some strange journey, and
therefore, as a wife should, I accompany him."
"That is so, royal Lady, though I knew not that you were wed to the
lord Kallikrates."
"What is marriage?" she asked. "Is it certain words mumbled before an
altar and a priest, a thing of witnessed ceremony, or is it the union
of the heart and flesh according to Nature's custom and decree? But
let that pass. Where my lord goes, there I accompany him."
"None forbids you, O Lady of Egypt."
"True, Prophetess. Yet my own heart forbids me. Know that but last
night I was haunted by a very evil dream. It seemed to me that my
father Nectanebes stood before in a sable robe that was shot through
with threads of fire. He spoke to me saying: 'Daughter, beware of that
witch who goes on a dreadful quest, taking with her one who is dear to
you. At the end of that quest lies Doom for her, for him, for you,
though each of these dooms be different!'"
"It may be so, Princess," I answered coldly. "Then accompany me not
and keep Kallikrates at your side."
"That I cannot do," she said in a sullen voice, "since now for the
first time he will not listen to my pleading and crosses my will. You
have laid your charm upon him as on others in the past, and where you
lead, he follows."
"Mayhap as a slave follows one who can show him where he may loose his
chains! But let us not bandy words, royal Amenartas. I depart. Follow
if you will, or bide behind, one or both of you. See, here comes
Kallikrates; agree together as it pleases you."
She turned and met him in the ruins of the ancient pylon, where they
debated together in words I could not hear. Once she seemed to
conquer, for both of them walked a little way toward their own home.
Then Kallikrates swung round upon his heel and came back to me who
stood by the litters. She hesitated awhile, ah! what mighty issues
hung upon this trembling of the balance of her mind, but in the end
she followed him.
After this, without more speech we entered the litters and began our
journey.
As we went across the misty plain it came home to me, as many a time
it has done during the long centuries that followed, how often the
great depends upon the little. Another bitter word from Amenartas, a
trifle less of courage in Kallikrates, and how differently would Fate
have fashioned the destinies of every one of us. For be it remembered
that the choice lay with these two; I did naught save wait upon their
wills. Had they so desired, never need they have entered those
litters. Alone I should have departed; alone I should have looked upon
the Fire and drunk of that Cup of Life, or perchance, as is probable,
I should have left it untasted and gone down my way to death after the
common fashion of mankind. But it was not so decreed; of their own
desire they took the path to doom, though perchance that desire was
shaped by some Strength above their own.
We reached the precipice and climbed it, Amenartas, Kallikrates, Philo
and I. We passed the cave by the light of lanterns, and we came to the
trembling spur of rock that reaches out like a great needle thrust
through the robe of darkness. When they looked upon it, Kallikrates
and Amenartas shivered and drew back, seeing which I rejoiced, for it
is true that at the moment I found no more heart for this adventure.
"Stay where you are," I cried, "and wait. I go to visit the holy Noot.
I will return again, and if I return not within a round of the sun,
then make your way back to Kor and there abide. Or if it pleases you,
seek the coast-land and the harbour of the Ethiopian's Head and depart
with the help of Philo, if he still lives, or if not, otherwise.
Farewell! I go."
"Nay," cried Kallikrates, "whither you lead, Prophetess, thither I
follow."
"If so," said Amenartas, laughing in her royal fashion, "you will not
follow alone. What! Shall I not dare that which my lord can dare? Is
this the first peril in which we twain have stood side by side? If it
be the last, what of it?"
So we started down the spur, Philo coming at the end of our line, and
though with many hazards, for once the brain of Amenartas swam so that
almost she fell, reached its point in safety. Here we waited crouched
upon the rough rock and clinging to it with our hands, lest its quick
throbbing should hurl us into the gulf, or the fierce gusts should
sweep us away like autumn leaves.
At length at the appointed moment the sword-like sunset ray appeared,
striking full upon us and showing that the frail bridge of boards was
still in the place, for it swayed and moved like the deck of a ship at
sea.
"Be bold and follow," I cried, "since he who hesitates is doomed," and
instantly I stepped across that perilous plank and took my stand upon
the swaying stone beyond.
For a moment Kallikrates stood doubtful, as well he might, but
Amenartas pushed past him and with a laugh crossed it as though she
would teach me that I was not the only one to whom the gods had given
courage. I caught her by the hand. Then Kallikrates followed because
he must, and she caught him by the hand and after him Philo, the
seaman, calmly enough, so that now all four of us stood together on
the stone.
"Glad enough am I to be here, Prophetess," cried Kallikrates, though
in that wailing wind his voice reached me only as a whisper. "Yet, I
know not why, it comes into my mind that I go upon my last journey."
I made no answer because his fateful words chilled my heart and choked
my voice; only I looked at his face and noted that it was white as ice
even in the red light of the ray and that his large eyes shone as
though with the fires of fever.
Taking Kallikrates by the hand and motioning to Philo to do likewise
with Amenartas, I led him to the little rough-hewn stair. By this
stair we descended into the sheltered place that was in front of the
hermitage of Noot and rejoiced was I to find myself and the others out
of the reach of those raging winds and to see that lights burned
within the cave beyond.
"Bide here, all of you," I said. "I will enter the cave and prepare
the holy Noot for your coming."
I entered the place thinking to find that strange dwarf who was Noot's
servant, but nowhere could he be seen. Yet I was sure that he must be
near, since on the rough rock were set food and wooden platters, four
platters as though awaiting four guests. I thought to myself that
doubtless the Master had seen us creeping down the spur, or perchance
his spirit had warned him of our coming--who could say?
I gazed about me to find Noot, and at length in the deep shadow, out
of reach of the lamp's rays, I perceived him kneeling before that
image of Isis whereof I have told, and wrapt in earnest prayer. I drew
near and waited a while who did not dare to break in upon his orisons.
Still he did not stir or look up. So quiet was he that he might have
been carved in ivory. I bent forward, examining his face. Lo! his eyes
were fixed and open and his jaw had fallen.
Noot was /dead!/
"My Master, my most beloved Master! Too late, too late!" I moaned, and
bending down kissed him on his brow of ice.
Then I began to think and swiftly. Had he not warned me when I bade
him farewell a while before that we spoke together for the last time?
Where was my faith who had forgotten that the prophecies of Noot were
always true? So he had gone to his rest in the bosom of Osiris, and on
me had fallen his mantle. I, Ayesha, was the guardian of the Fire of
Life, whereof alone I knew the secrets and held the key! The knowledge
struck me like a blow; I trembled and sank to the ground. I think that
for a little while I swooned and in that swoon strange dreams took
hold of me, half-remembered dreams, dreams not to be written.
Presently I rose and going to the doorway summoned the others, who
stood there huddled together like sheep before a storm.
"Enter," I said, and they obeyed. "Now be seated and eat," I went on,
pointing to the table on which the food was ready.
"Where is the master of the feast, Prophetess? Where is the holy Noot
whom we have walked this fearful road to see?" asked Kallikrates,
staring about him.
"Yonder," I answered, pointing to the depths of the shadow, "yonder--
dead and cold. You tarried too long at Kor, Kallikrates. Now you must
seek his counsel and his absolution at another table--that of Osiris."
Thus I spoke, for something inspired the words, yet ere they had left
my lips I could have bitten out the tongue that shaped them. Was
/this/ the place to talk of the Table of Osiris to the man I loved?
They went to that dark nook where the little sacred statue looked down
upon its quiet worshipper. They stared in silence; they returned,
Philo muttering prayers, Kallikrates wringing his hands, for he had
loved and honoured Noot above any man that lived. Also--I read the
question in his mind--to whom now should he confess his sins? Who now
could loose their burden?
Only Amenartas pondered a space; then she spoke with a slow and
meaningful smile, saying,
"Perchance, my lord, it is as well that this old high-priest has come
to discover whether he dreamed true dreams for so many years upon the
earth. I know not what you would have said to him, yet I can guess
that it boded but little good to me, your wife, for so I am, whatever
yonder priestess may tell you, who also bodes little good either to me
or to you, my lord Kallikrates. Well, he is dead and even Wisdom's
Daughter there cannot bring him back to life. So let us rest a while
and eat, and then return by that dread road which we have trodden, ere
our strength and spirit fail us."
"That you may not do, Princess Amenartas, until the sunset comes again
and once more the red ray shows us where to set our feet, for to
attempt it sooner is to die," I answered, and went on:
"Hearken. By the death of this holy man, or half-god, I have become
the keeper of a certain treasure over which he watched. It is hidden
deep in the bowels of the earth beneath us. I must go to visit it and
see that it is safe. This I shall do presently. Bide you here, if you
will, till I return, and if I return not, wait till the ray strikes
upon the point of rock, cross the bridge, climb the spur, and flee
whither you will. Philo can guide you."
"Not so, Child of Isis," said Philo. "My oath and duty are to you, not
to this pair. Whither you go, I follow to the end."
"I follow also," said Kallikrates, "who would not be left in this
darksome place companied by death."
"Yet it might be wiser, Kallikrates," I answered, "since who can
escape that company of death of which you speak?" for again dreadful
and ominous words rushed unbidden from my heart.
"I care not. I go," he said almost sullenly.
"Then I go also," broke in Amenartas. "This Prophetess doubtless is
wise and holy, yet I may be pardoned if I choose to share her
fellowship with you upon a road unknown. Perchance it has another gate
elsewhere that I might never find," she added in bitter jest.
Oh! had this fool but known that her coarse stabs at me did but harden
the heart which she sought to pierce, and drive it whither she did not
desire.
"As you will," I answered. "Now eat and rest till the hour of
departure comes and I summon you."
So they ate, if not much, though for my own part I touched no food,
and laid them down in the inner cave as best they might, and there
slept, or did not sleep. But I, I watched the hours away by the dead
shell of the holy Noot, striving to commune with his spirit which I
knew to be near to me. Yet it gave no answer to all my questions. Or
at least there came one only which again and again seemed to shape
itself to a single word,
"/Beware!/"
Strange, thought I to myself, that the prophet Noot my Master, who
loved me better than any other living upon the earth, and knew the
most of my lonely, wayward heart, now that he was justified and made
perfect, as doubtless he must be, if such a lot can be attained by
man, should find no more to say to me than this one word, which indeed
while in the flesh often he had said before. Therefore it seemed that
in the flesh and out of it his counsel was the same; one certainly
that I should take.
What did it mean? That I should look no more upon the Fire; that I
should rise up and get me back to Kor and there play such parts as I
could compass, and wither and grow old and die, nurturing perchance
the children of Kallikrates and Amenartas, should they seek the Shades
before me; or, growing weary of barbarians and ruins, flee away from
Kor to find the fellowship of instructed men.
That is what this counsel meant. Well, what did that of my own heart
promise me? Perhaps a swift death and after it punishment in some dim
land beyond, because I had disobeyed the shadowy cautionings of the
holy Noot and dared to make trial of a new Strength, against which as
yet no man had matched himself. Or perhaps a glory greater than any
man had ever dreamed, and a power far above that of emperors and a
life longer than that of mountains. Also more--more, the love that I
desired, to me a greater guerdon than all these boons added together
and multiplied by the snowflakes upon Lebanon or the sands of the
seashore. Surely, come what might of it, I would take my own counsel
and let the other be.
The hour came; although I saw it not, I knew that it was that of dawn
in the world without. I arose, I summoned the others; we departed down
that darksome path of which I have written, climbing from rock to rock
in the bowels of the earth by the dim light of the lanterns which we
bore.
We came to the outer cavern; we passed the passage and reached the
second cavern, halting at the mouth of another passage through which
at intervals shot flickerings of light, and from time to time sounds
as of muttering thunder reached our ears.
"The treasure on which I would look lies yonder. Bide ye here," I
said.
"Nay," answered Kallikrates, "now as before I follow."
"Where my lord goes there go I also," said Amenartas.
Only Philo, the cautious Greek, bowed his head and answered,
"I obey. I bide here. If I am needed, summon me, O Child of Isis."
"Good," I cried, who at that moment thought little of Philo and his
fate, though it is true that, cunning as he might be, I loved him
well.
Then I went on and with me went Kallikrates and Amenartas.
CHAPTER XXIII
THE DOOM OF THE FIRE
We stood in the third cave that was carpeted with white sand and alive
with rosy light. Making a dark stain upon that snowy sand was a black
patch of dust. I knew it again; when last I had seen it, it bore the
withered shape of one long dead. The rolling many-coloured fire
approached from afar; its muttering grew to a roar, its roar grew to
such a thunder as shakes the mountain peaks and splits the walls of
citadels. It appeared, blazing with a thousand lights; for a while it
hovered, twisting like a spun top. Then it departed upon its eternal
round in the unknown entrails of the earth, and the tumult sank to
silence.
Kallikrates, terrified, flung himself upon his face; even the proud
Amenartas fell to her knees, covering her eyes with her hands; only I
stood erect and laughed, I who knew that I was betrothed to that fire
and that it ill became the bride-to-be to shrink from her promised
lord.
Kallikrates rose, asking,
"Where is the treasure which you seek, Prophetess? If it be hidden
here, in this awful house of a living god, look on it swiftly, and let
us begone. I, a mortal man, am terrified."
"As well you may be," broke in Amenartas, "since such wizardries as
these have not been told of in the earth. I say it, who know something
of wizardries, and like my father have stood face to face with spirits
summoned from the Under-world, giving them word for word of power."
"My treasure lies in the red heart of yonder raging flame, and
presently I go to pluck it thence," I answered in a quiet voice.
"Whether I shall return I do not know. Perchance I shall abide in the
fire and be borne away upon its wings. Stay if you will, or if you
will, while there is yet time, depart, but trouble me no more with
words, who must steel my soul to its last trial."
They stared at me, both of them, and remained silent.
For a space I stood still pondering. It seemed to me that I was the
plaything of two great Strengths that dragged me forward, that dragged
me back. The spirit of the Fire cried,
"Come, O Divine! Come, be made perfect, and queen it in this red heart
of mine. Come, drink of that full cup of mysteries which no mortal
lips have drained. Come, see those things that are hidden from mortal
eyes. Come, taste of joys wherewith no mortal heart has ever throbbed.
Haste, haste to the fiery bridal and in the glory of my kiss learn
what delight can be. Oh! doubt no more but take Faith by the hand and
let her lead thee home. Doubt no more! Be brave, lay down mortality:
put on the spirit and as a spirit sit enthroned beyond the touch of
time and with immortal eyes, robed in eternal majesty, watch the
generations pass, marching with sad feet from darkness into darkness.
Behold there he stands who is appointed to thee, who was thine from
the beginning, who shall be thine until the end of ends. Thy new-born
loveliness shall chain him fast and he shall grow drunken in the
breath of thy perfumed sighs who for ever and for ever and for ever
shall be thy very own, turning the winter of thy widowed heart to
summer of perpetual joy."
Thus spake the spirit of the Flame, but to it there answered another
spirit that wore the shape of Noot, yea, of Noot grown stern and
terrible.
"Turn back, O Wisdom's Daughter, ere thou art wrapped in the robe of
madness and repentance comes too late," it seemed to say. "Always the
tempter tempts and when bribe after bribe is scorned, at last he pours
his richest jewels at the feet of her whom he would win. Woe, woe to
her who, charmed of their false glitter, clasps them upon brow and
breast, for there they shall change to scorpions and through the
living flesh gnaw to the brain and heart within. Departing, have I not
set thee to watch the Fire and wilt thou steal the Fire, therewith to
make thyself a god? Do so and this I swear to thee: that the godhead
which thou shalt put on will be that of hell. Thy love shall be
snatched away; undying, through all the earth, through all the stars,
thou shalt follow after him and never find, or, if thou findest, it
will be but to lose again. Dost thou dare to wrest thy destiny out of
the hand of Fate and fashion it to thy desire with the instrument of
thy blind and petty will? Do so, and daemons shall possess it that from
age to age shall drive thee on, torn by the furies of remorse, choked
with bitter, unavailing tears, frozen by the icy blasts of sorrow;
desolate, alone, unfriended, till at last thou standest before the
Judgment-seat hearkening with bowed head to a doom that can never be
undone. Daughter of Wisdom, art thou sunk so low that thou wilt forget
thine oaths and break thy trust to rob another woman of her lover?"
Those visions passed and I grasped denial's robes. I would not do this
thing. I would live out my life upon the earth, I would die--oh! might
it be soon--to pass to whatever place had been prepared for me, or to
sink into the deep abysm of that rich and boundless sleep which no
dreams haunt.
Aye! renouncing joy and renounced of hope, already I turned to go and
climb my upward path back to the bitter world.
Then, from far, far away came the faint music of the chant of the
advancing god of Fire. Low and sweet it sang at first, soft as a
mother's lullaby, and lo! I dreamed of a happy childhood's day. It
swelled and grew and now I had entered into womanhood and strange,
uncomprehended longings companioned me. It took a fiercer note and I
bethought me of the beating of the hoofs of horses as, mounted on my
crested stallion, I rushed across the desert like the wind. Louder
yet, and behold! once more I was in the battle at my father's side;
behind me the wild tribesmen surged and shouted; in front of me my
foes were beaten down to death. Ah! bright flashed my javelin, ah!
free flowed my hair among the flapping pennons. "The Daughter of
Yarab! Follow the daughter of Yarab!" cried the thousands of my kin,
and on we went, like sun-loosed snows down mountains, on upon the
marshalled host beneath. We broke them, for who could stand before the
Daughter of Yarab and her kin? We trampled them, Egyptian and Syrian
and Mede and the men from Chittim's Isle; down they went before that
wild charge, and see! my bright spear was red.
Deeper yet and more solemn grew that mighty music. Now I was alone in
the wilderness beneath the stars, and from the stars knowledge and
beauty fell upon my heart like dew. Now I was a ruler of men, and
kings who would be my lovers bent at my feet and were the puppets of
my hands. I cast them down and broke them; I saw Sidon go up in flames
and filled my soul with vengeance. Hark! It is the footstep of the
goddess, the Queen of Heaven sets her kiss upon my brow; she names me
Daughter, her Appointed. Knowledge is mine, out of my lips flow
prophecies, a spirit guides my feet. I, I hold my own against the
Persian, when all else have fled I cast him from his throne. I give
his pomp to the tongues of Fire. Oh! how they cry, those mockers of
Egypt's gods, as I watch them scorch and perish.
I am lonely. Where is my love? I wend toward the grave and none are
born of me. I seek my love. "There stands my love--not far away, but
at thy side. Take him, take him, take him!" Thus said the Fire.
Now its voice is the voice of trumpets that blare and echo around the
hills. They call, those trumpets call: "Where is the captain of our
hosts? Where is our Queen? Come forth, O Queen, crowned with wisdom,
diademed with power, holding in thine hand the gift of days. No longer
would we be left leaderless, we who would march to victory and hold
the world in thrall."
The King of Fire is at hand. He opens the gateways of the dark. Behind
him march the legions: he comes with splendour, he comes with glory,
he comes to take his bride. "Unrobe, unrobe! Prepare thyself, O Bride!
The King of Fire calls!"
I unloosed my garments, I unbound my hair that covered me like to a
sable robe.
"Art mad?" cried the Greek, Kallikrates, wringing his hands.
"Art mad?" echoed the royal Amenartas with a slow smile as she waited
to see mine end.
"Nay, I am wise," I answered back, "I who weary of tame days and
common things, I who seek death or triumph."
I ran. I stood in the pathway of the Fire. It saw; it stretched out
its arms to me. Lo! it wrapped me round and in my ears I heard the
shoutings of the stars.
Oh! what was this? I did not burn. The blood of the gods flowed
through my veins. The soul within me became as a lighted torch. The
Fire possessed me, I was the Fire's and in a dread communion the Fire
was mine. By that lit torch of my heart I saw many visions; veils
rolled up before my eyes revealing glory after glory, glories that
cannot be told. Death shrank away from before my feet; pale and
ashamed he shrank away. Pain departed, weakness was done. I stood the
Queen of all things human.
Lo! mirrored in that Fire as in water I saw myself, a shape of
loveliness celestial. Could this form be the form of woman? Could
those orbs divine be a woman's eyes?
Then a great silence and in the silence a silvery tinkling sound that
I knew well--the sound of the laughter of Aphrodite!
The pillar of flame had rolled away, its thousand blinding lights had
ceased to shine, and there I stood triumphant, conquering, never to be
conquered. I came forth speaking with a voice of music, knowing that I
had inherited another soul. What now to me was Isis or any other
goddess, to me who stood victorious, the equal of them all? Oh! I saw
now that Isis was but Nature and henceforth Nature was my slave. I
thought no more of sin or of repentance, I who from this day forth
would fashion my own laws and be to myself a judge. That which I
desired, that I would take. That which was hateful to me that would I
cast away. Yea! I was Nature's very self. I felt all her springs
stirring in my blood; it glowed with the heats of all her summers. I
was kind with the kindness of her fruitful autumns; I was terrible
with her winter wrath.
Look! There stood the man whom I desired. Somewhat coarse and poor he
seemed to me; I smelt death upon him. To be my mate he must be my
equal; he too must taste of the Fire; then we would talk of love. As
he was, my love was not for him, nay, it would destroy him as the
lightning blasts.
"Look on me, Kallikrates," I cried, "and tell me, in all your days
have you seen aught so fair?"
"Fair, yes, fair!" he gasped, "but terrible in beauty. No woman, no
woman! A very spirit. Oh! let me shut mine eyes. Let me flee!"
"Be still and wait," I answered, "for soon I shall show you how they
may be opened. Look on me, Daughter of Pharaoh, and tell me, has that
stamp of age of which you spoke to me not long ago departed from my
face and form, or is it yet apparent?"
"I look," she answered, still bold, "and I see before me no child of
man, but a very witch! Away from us, accursed witch! Clothe yourself,
shameless one, and begone, or let us begone, leaving you to commune
with your witch's fire."
I cast my robes around me and oh! they hung royally. Then once more I
turned to Kallikrates, considering him. As I looked I became aware
that a great change had fallen upon me. I was no longer the Ayesha of
old days. That Ayesha had been spirit-driven; her soul aspired to the
heavens; it glistened with the dews of purity. True, I had loved this
man, little at the first, and more a hundred times after Noot had
suffered me to look upon the Fire, since with the sight and the sound
and the odours of it the great change began.
That Ayesha was one who dreamed of heavenly things; one with whom
prayer was a constant habit of the mind; yes, all her thoughts were
mixed with the leaven of prayer, so that the humblest deed and the
most common of imaginings were by it sanctified! She knew that here
was not her home, but that far away and out of sight, beyond the seas
and mountains of the world, her everlasting house rose white and
stately and that with her earthly toil and sufferings she built it
stone by stone, filling its halls and porticoes with ivory statues of
the gods, making it pure with clouds of incense that their perfected
souls brooding on her soul drew from it, as at dawn the sun draws mist
from rivers.
With grief and toil, with bleeding feet; buffeted by the winds of
circumstance, wet with the rain of tears, washed by the waters of
repentance, she climbed the stony upward path that led to the Peak of
Peace. She believed in she knew not what, for always to her those gods
were man-shaped symbols. Still day and night she struggled on, lit by
the rays of the lamp of faith, sure that in the end the veils would be
withdrawn and that she would look upon the Face Divine and hear its
voice of welcome. She was obedient to the Law; she knew that time was
not her own and that of every moment she must give account. Aye, she
was in the way of holiness and before her shone the golden guerdons of
redemption.
But now. What was Ayesha now when she had known the embrace of the
Spirit of Fire, when she had dared the deed and wrung the secret from
his burning heart? Aye, when on the earth she had attained to
immortality, since even then a voice cried in her ears:
"Behold! thou shalt not die. Behold while the world lives, with it
thou shalt live also, because thou hast drunk of the wine of Earth's
primeval Soul that cannot be spilled until its mighty fabric is
dissolved into the nothingness whence it sprang!"
What was she now? She was that very Earth. She was that Soul poured
into the white vase of a woman's form; aye, she was its essence. Its
lightnings and its hurricanes lay chained within her, ready to leap
out when she was wrath, and who could abide before their strength? She
knew all Earth's glory as alone it swung through space, kissed of the
light of the Sun its father, or dreaming in the arms of darkness. The
planets were her sisters, the bright, blazing stars acknowledged her
as kin. Aye; with this mother-world she symbolled she was numbered
among the multitude of that hierarchy of heaven.
Nor was this all, for in her reigned and glowed every power and
passion of the Earth. Thenceforth all things were at her command, but,
like that Earth, /she was alone and could no more speak with Heaven!/.
In a flash, in a twinkling, all this mighty truth came home to me, and
with it other truths. I did not doubt, I did not dream, I knew, I
knew, I /knew!/
There stood the man and I would take him. He was wed according to
Nature's law, and now I owned no other. But what of that? The wine
that I desired I would drink. I would mate me as the wild things
mated, by strength and capture, since I was very strong and who could
stand against my might? I, the reborn Ayesha, had commanded. It should
be done.
"Kallikrates," I said in my new voice of honeyed sweetness, "behold
your spouse, one of whom you need not be ashamed. Make ready,
Kallikrates. Go stand in the path of the Fire when it returns, and
then let us hence to reign eternally."
"What, Witch," cried Amenartas, "would you rob me of my lord? It shall
not be. If you are mighty, so am I, although I remain a woman.
Kallikrates, look on me, your wife, she who has borne your child, that
lost child who binds us yet with bonds that may not be broken. Have
done with this fair daemon ere she enchant you. Away! Away from this
haunted, mocking hell."
"I come. Surely I come," said Kallikrates, glancing at me fearfully.
"I am afraid of her, and of that fire I will have none. Surely it is
Set himself wrapped about with flames."
"Nay, you go not, Kallikrates. Let Amenartas go if she desires. Here
you abide with me until all is accomplished. I command, and when I
command, you must obey."
He wheeled about; he flung himself into the arms of Amenartas. They
closed around him and held him fast. Then I threw out my will. Saying
nothing I laid my strength upon him, so that he was dragged from out
those arms and with slow steps drew near to me, as the bird draws near
to the snake that charms it with its baleful eyes. Amenartas leaped
between us and from her lips flowed words in torrents.
All she said I do not know; it is forgot; but very sore she pleaded
and very bitterly she wept. Yet my heart, new steeled in yonder fire,
felt no pity for her. An hour past I should have bade him go his way
and to look upon my face no more, but now it was otherwise. I was
cruel, cruel as Death, King of the world. The wild beast does not
spare its rival, neither would I.
Still I drew him with my strength; still Amenartas clung and pleaded,
till at last madness took hold of that tormented man. He raved, he
cursed us both, he cursed himself who had left the quiet halls of
Isis, who had spurned the love divine to seek the arms of woman. He
prayed to Isis to be pitiful, to forgive, to receive his soul and
shrive it.
Then suddenly from his belt he snatched his short Grecian sword and
stabbed at his own heart.
Swift as a snake that strikes, or a falcon stooping at its prey, I
sprang. I seized his arm, I dragged it back, and such might was there
in my grasp, aye, the might of Hercules himself, that the sword flew
far, and the strong man who held it reeled round and round and fell.
We stood aghast, thinking that he was sped. Yet he rose, the red blood
running from his beast, and in a quiet voice, a little laugh upon his
lips, said to Amenartas, not to me,
"Fear nothing, Wife. Alas! it is but a cut--skin deep, no more."
"Then let the fire heal it, O Kallikrates. Make ready to enter the
fire that must soon retravel its circling path," I answered.
"Nay, nay, Husband," cried Amenartas. "By that blood of yours, the
blood that flowed in our dead son and flows in that of the child to
be, I adjure you turn from this witch and temptress and break her
enchanted bonds."
"By our dead son," he repeated after her in a strange and heavy voice.
"With what holier words could you conjure, O my wife? With that name
of power I am new-armoured. Daughter of Wisdom, I reject your
proffered gifts, nor will I enter your charmed fire though it should
give to me eternal strength and gloriousness, and with these your
shining beauty and your love. Child of the gods, farewell! I go to
seek peace and pardon if it may be found. Yes, pardon for you and me,
and for Amenartas, the mother of my child. Daughter of Wisdom, fare
you well for ever!"
I heard and it seemed to me that I stood alone in the midst of a great
silence while those cruel words, divorcing me from hope, fell one by
one upon me like ice-drops from the sky, cutting to brain and heart
and freezing me to stone. Then of a sudden rage possessed me, such
rage as Nature knows in her fiercest moods, and I spoke as it gave me
words, saying,
"I call down death upon thee, Kallikrates the Greek. Death be thy
portion and the grave thy home. Because thou hast rejected me, because
thou hast offered me insult to my face, it is my will that thou mayest
die; it is my desire that thy name be blotted out from the roll of
Life. Die, then, Kallikrates, that thine eyes may torment me no more
and that I may learn to mock thy memory."
Thus I spoke those words of doom in my madness, though what conceived
them in my heart I do not know. There they sprang up suddenly at the
touch of the wand of Evil, such evil as until now I had never dreamed.
Lo! in a moment they fulfilled themselves. There before my eyes that
man /died/, smitten of the dominion over Death that was the Fire's
fatal gift to me, as now, all unprepared, instantly I learned. Yes,
the first service that I made of my dread majesty was to hurl that
awful doom at the heart of the man I loved.
He died! Kallikrates died there before our eyes. Yet being dead, still
he stood upon his feet and spoke, though even then I knew that it was
not he who spoke, but some spirit possessing his flesh. His lips did
not move, his eyes were glassed, his voice was not the voice of
Kallikrates, nay, nor the voice of mortal man. Yet he spoke, or seemed
to speak, and these were the words he said,
"Woman, known on earth as Ayesha, daughter of Yarab, but in the Under-
world by many another name, hearken to thy fate. Here, where thou hast
betrayed thy trust, here where thou didst slay the man of thy desire,
here through long ages shalt thou abide undying, until in the fulness
of time he returns to thee, O Ayesha, in lonely bitterness shalt thou
abide; tears shall be thy drink and remorse thy bread. The power that
thou didst crave shall be but a blunted, unused sword within thine
hand. Thy kingdom shall be a desolation, thy subjects barbarians, and
from century to century thy companions shall be the dead."
The voice ceased and I answered it, asking,
"And when the returning tide of Time bears this man back to me, what
then, O Spirit? Is all hope passed from me, O Spirit?"
No answer came, but that which had been Kallikrates sank in a huddled
heap upon the sand.
CHAPTER XXIV
THE COUNSEL OF PHILO
Roaring like a whirlwind, shouting triumphantly, once more the wheel
of fire rolled on its tremendous course. I watched it come, I watched
it go, while in it I thought I saw grinning, elf-like faces that
gibbered at me and thrust out tongues of derision. It departed on its
secret journey through the bowels of the world. Its thunder sank to
mutterings, its mutterings to silence, while I said to my heart that
could I be sure that it would slay, I would cast myself beneath its
chariot wheels.
To what purpose? Since then, as I believed in those days, in the
flames I should find but added life--I who could not die.
It was gone. Naught remained save the cave carpeted with white sand
and the rosy light playing on the body of the dead Kallikrates. Nay,
Amenartas remained also, and I became aware that she was cursing me by
all her gods, or rather by those who had been her gods before she
turned her face from them, seeking the counsel of familiar spirits.
Bravely she cursed and long, calling down upon my head every evil that
can be found in heaven above or earth beneath; she who did not know
that this was needless, for already the winged Furies had made it
their resting-place and before they could be uttered all her
imprecations were fulfilled.
"Have done!" I said when at length she grew weak and weary, "and let
us summon Philo to help us bear this noble clay to some fitting
sepulchre."
"Nay, Witch," she answered, "use your magic on me also, if you can.
Slay the wife as you have slain the husband, and here let us rest
eternally. What tomb can be better for both of us than that which saw
our murder."
"Have done!" I repeated. "You know well that I have no desire to kill
you and that it was my madness, not my will, that brought doom on
Kallikrates, whom we loved; I who had not learned that henceforth my
spirit is a bow winged with deadly shafts."
I went down the cave and through the passage that lay beyond and from
its mouth called to Philo to follow me.
He came, and perceiving my new loveliness as I stood awaiting him in
the rosy light, fell to the ground, kissing my feet and the hem of my
robe, and muttering,
"O Isis-come-to-Earth! O Queen divine!"
"Rise up and follow me," I said, and led him to where lay Kallikrates,
by whom knelt the widowed Amenartas weeping bitterly.
"Overwhelmed with the sight of glory, alas! this lord has slain
himself," I said, and pointed to the wound in the dead man's breast
whence still the blood oozed drop by drop.
"Nay, this witch slew him," moaned Amenartas, but if Philo heard her
words, he took no heed of them.
Then at my command the three of us lifted Kallikrates and bore him
thence up the difficult ways, which never could we have done had I not
discovered that now in my woman's shape that seemed so frail and weak
was hid unmeasured strength.
So through the caves and up the winding slopes and stairs we bore the
dead Kallikrates, bringing him back to the hermitage of Noot but a
little before the hour of sunset. Here I commanded Amenartas and Philo
to eat and drink, though myself I needed neither food nor wine. While
they did so, aided of this new strength of mine, I lifted the body of
Noot from where it knelt and laid it down, crossing the hands upon the
breast, and having covered it with a robe, left him to his last sleep.
These things finished, we carried Kallikrates to the crest of the
Swaying Stone, and waited the coming of the ray. Suddenly it shone
out, and in its fierce light we dared the shifting bridge. Beneath a
weight which it was ill designed to bear, the frail thing broke just
as Amenartas and Philo, bearing the feet of the dead man, had found
footing upon the point of the spur beyond. It seemed that I should
have fallen, yet I fell not, who, I know not how, found myself at
their side still supporting Kallikrates in my arms.
Then it was that first I learned that as I was protected from the
gnawings of the tooth of Time so also I was armoured against all the
strokes of chance. This indeed became very clear to me in the after
days. Thus once when the roof of a cave fell upon me and others they
were slain but I remained unbruised, and again, when a deadly snake
bit me, its poison harmed me not at all. But what of these things
which are not worthy to be chronicled, seeing that if I could die, in
the passing of two thousand years and more, what men call mishap must
long since have brought me to my end.
We bore Kallikrates down the spur and through the cavern whence it
springs, till at length we found the litters waiting for us, and in
one of these we laid his quiet form.
Thus at length we came back to Kor at the hour of the dawn.
Again we lifted up the corpse of Kallikrates and carried it to the
chamber where I slept. A thought came to me.
"Philo," I said, "did you not tell me that among those who serve us in
this temple are certain aged medicine-men who declare that knowledge
of the arts whereby the people of old Kor preserved their dead from
corruption has come down to them, which arts they still practise from
time to time?"
"It is so, O Queen," for so he named me now. "There are three of
them."
"Good. Summon them, Philo, and bid them bring with them their
instruments and spices."
Awhile later the three appeared, very aged, cunning-looking men who
had upon their hawk-nosed faces the stamp of high and ancient blood. I
pointed to the body of Kallikrates and asked,
"Are ye able to hold back this holy flesh from the foul fingers of
decay?"
"If he be not more than forty hours dead," answered one of them, "we
can do so in such fashion that when five thousand years have passed it
will seem as it does at this hour, O Queen."
"Then to your office, Slaves, and know that if ye do as ye have
promised ye shall receive great reward. But if ye lie to me, ye die."
"We do not lie, O Queen," he said.
Forthwith they set a fire outside the chamber and thereon set a large
earthen pot. In this pot, mixed with water, they placed dried leaves
of a certain shrub, in shape long and narrow, and boiled them to a
broth, whereof the pungent colour seemed to fill all the air about.
While the pot was boiling they took the corpse of Kallikrates, and,
having washed it, brushed it everywhere with some secret stuff that
gave to it the aspect of white and shining marble. Then they brought a
funnel of clay with a curved point, and having opened the great artery
of the throat, inserted the point into the artery.
This done, they stood the stiff corpse on its feet and while two of
them held it thus, the third brought the pot into which they poured
stuff that looked like glass when it is molten, mixing all together
with a rod of stone. Then he set a ladder, perhaps four paces in
length, against the wall, and carrying the pot, climbed to the top of
it, whence slowly he poured the brew into the funnel beneath so that
its weight forced it through all the dead man's veins. When the most
of it was gone he descended and the three of them finished their work
in some way that I did not stay to watch, for the sight of this grim
preparation for the tomb and the scent of these spicy drugs overcame
me.
At length they summoned me and showed me Kallikrates lying like to one
in a deep sleep, calm and beautiful as he had been in life.
"O Queen," said their spokesman, "by to-morrow at the sunrise the
flesh of this man will be as marble, and so everlastingly remain. Then
bear him where you will, but till then let him rest untouched."
I bade that they should be rewarded, and they went their ways. But
first I asked them where the inhabitants of old Kor were wont to lay
their royal dead. They answered that it was in the great caves at a
little distance across the plain, and I commanded that on the morrow
they should guide me thither, bearing the body of Kallikrates.
Philo came and said that the priests and priestesses of Isis would
have speech with me and that they were gathered in the inmost court of
the great temple before the veiled statue of the goddess Truth. I bade
him lead on, but he wavered a little and said,
"O Queen, there is trouble. The royal lady, Amenartas, has told a tale
in the ears of those priests and priestesses. She has sworn to them
that you are not a woman but a daemon; aye, a witch risen from the
Under-world, and that you murdered the lord Kallikrates because he
would not give himself to you. Also she swore that you strove to
murder her who, being protected by the magic which her father
Nectanebes, the great wizard, taught her, was too strong for you and
therefore escaped alive."
"As to the last, she lies," I answered carelessly.
We came to the inmost court. It was the hour of sunset and the place
was filled with glowing light. I took my seat upon the throne-like
chair beneath the statue and the light beat full upon me, a glory on a
glory.
The priests and priestesses who were standing still with folded arms
and bowed heads looked up and saw me. A murmur of astonishment rose
from them and I heard one say to the other,
"The Princess has told us truth."
At first I did not understand; then I remembered that I was no long as
mortal women are, but rather, as my mirror told me, an incarnate
splendour, a very goddess to the sight.
"Speak," I said, and they shook at the new rich note of power in my
voice, as leaves vibrate at the sudden swell of music.
The first of the priests, a large man of middle age, Rames by name,
stood forward and fixing his round eyes upon my face, said,
"O Prophetess, O Daughter of Wisdom, O Isis-come-to-Earth, we know not
what to say, since we have heard that you have changed your shape, now
as is evident to us. Prophetess, you are not the same high-priestess
who ruled over us in the temple at Memphis and whom we followed to
this desolate land. Some magic has been at work with you."
"If so," I answered, "is it an evil magic? Tell me, Rames, am I
changed for better or for worse?"
"You are beautiful," he answered, "so beautiful that madness must take
all men who look on you. But, Prophetess, your loveliness is not such
as mortal woman wears. Nay, it is such as Typhon might give to one who
had sold her soul to him. Also, there is more. We learn that you
murdered the Greek Kallikrates, who once was of our fellowship,
because he refused his love to you; yes, that you, the high-priestess
of Isis, murdered a man because he turned from your arms to those of
his wife, the royal Amenartas, and that if you could, you would have
murdered her also."
"Who tells this tale?" I asked slowly.
"The Princess herself," Rames answered. "See, she is here. Let her
speak."
Amenartas appeared from among the throng, and cried,
"It is true, it is most true. Here before the statue of Truth herself,
I swear it in the face of Heaven and to all the listening earth. There
is a wound on the breast of my dead lord, Kallikrates. Ask yonder
witch how that wound came there. Clothed only in her hair, she entered
into a fire, a fire of hell. She came forth beautiful with a beauty
that is not human. She called my lord to embrace her. Yes, this
shameless one, she named herself his spouse. This she did before the
eyes of his own wife and in the hearing of her ears. She bade him
enter the Fire of Hell, and when he would not, when he turned to seek
refuge in my arms, she sent him down the path of death by her words of
power. She said:
"'I call down death upon thee, Kallikrates. Death be thy portion and
the grave thine home. Die, Kallikrates, that thy face may torment me
no more and that I may learn to mock thy memory.'
"These were her very words. Let her deny them if she can. I say,
moreover, that always she has desired to lead astray the lord
Kallikrates, and that when she could not do so of her woman's
strength, then she made a pact with Typhon and strove to mesh him in
her magic, but strove in vain. Therefore she slew him in her rage."
When the priests and priestesses heard these words they turned pale
and trembled. Then they called me to answer. But I said,
"I answer not. Who are you that I should render account to you of what
I have or have not done? Think what you will and do what you will, I
answer not, save this, that what has chanced, has chanced by the
decree of Fate who sits above all gods and goddesses, throned beyond
heaven's remotest star."
They drew apart, they talked together. Then Rames came forward and,
still staring at me, said:
"Whether you yet serve Isis, O Ayesha, daughter of Yarab, we do not
know. But we who are her children, sworn to her obedience for which we
have suffered many things, reject you from your place of rule in which
you were set above us by the holy Noot, whom we learn has passed to
the keeping of Osiris. No more are you our high-priestess, Ayesha, or
Evil Spirit, and no longer shall you stand with us before the altars
of the Queen of Heaven."
"Be it as you will," I answered. "Go and leave me to make mine own
peace with Isis, who now and henceforward am her equal, I who have
learned what Isis is, and been clothed with that same majesty. I see
that you believe me to blaspheme; the horror upon your faces tells me
so. Yet I do not; here in the shadow of Truth--if it were but known,
the only goddess--I speak with the voice of Truth. Farewell. I wish
you good fortune, and in all things will aid you if I can. Tell me,
Philo, do you desert me like these others?"
"Nay, O Queen," he answered, "we are old comrades, you and I, who have
gone through too much together to separate at last. I am a Greek who
entered into the company of Isis chiefly after I met you, fair
Daughter of Wisdom, and noted the deeds you did upon the ship /Hapi/,
and to be short--whatever road you take is a good road for me. I know
not whether you slew this Kallikrates, or whether he slew himself with
his own sword, of which I noted the mark upon him, but if you offered
him your love and he refused it then I hold that he deserved to die.
"For the rest, I am a merchant who take my gain where I can find it,
and I know that you pay well. Therefore I follow your banner to the
end, whether it lead me to the Heaven of Isis or to the Hades of my
forefathers, where doubtless I shall meet Achilles and Hector and
Odysseus and many another gallant seafaring warrior of whom our Homer
sings. That place whither you wend is home enough for me, for in your
palace I shall always find a chamber, and on your ship of state I
shall always stand upon the poop, however far the voyage."
Thus spoke that gay and cunning Greek, hiding the loyalty of his heart
beneath his jesting words, and truly in that hour of deserted
loneliness my gratitude went out toward him, as still it does to-day
and will do for evermore. For though Philo would take a bribe where he
could find it, as is the way of those who serve Fortune and must earn
bread, still he was ever loyal to those he loved, and he loved me in
that high fashion which is born of long service and of fellowship.
When at length I come into my great inheritance, and rule otherwhere--
as rule I shall--my first care shall be to reward Philo as he
deserves, although once or more he did fill his pouch with the gold of
Amenartas, or so I believe.
Yet at this time I only smiled at him and asked,
"These things being done, what of the Princess of Egypt? Let her speak
her desire that I may fulfil it, if I can."
"It is simple," answered Amenartas, "that I may be rid of you, no less
and no more. I would go hence to bear my child and to rear him to
wreak vengeance on you for his father's blood, O Witch of the Under-
world, and until I die, to work and pray that the Furies may be your
bedfellows, O murderess and thief of love."
"Let these things befall as they are fated," I answered very quietly.
"The stage of doom is set and on it throughout the ages until the play
ends at last, we, the puppets of Destiny, must act our appointed parts
to a consummation that we cannot foresee. But how will it end, Lady
Amenartas? You know not; nor do I, though already some master's hand
has writ the last scene upon his roll. Philo, it is my command that
you lead Pharaoh's child to the coast, or wherever she would go, that
thence she may find her way to Greece or Egypt as Fortune may direct
her. That done, return and make report to me. Farewell, Amenartas."
"Fare ill, Witch," she cried. "We part, but as I think, to meet again
elsewhere, seeing that between you and me there is a score to settle."
"Aye," I answered gently enough. "Yet boast not, Amenartas, and be not
too sure of anything, since when at length that sum is added up, who
knows on which side the balance will be struck."
"At least I know that the count will be long and that murder is a
heavy weight in any scale," she answered.
Then she went; they all went and left me alone brooding there upon the
chair of state, in which I sat for the last time. The darkness closed
about me, then came the twilight of the rising moon in whose soft rays
I saw the figure of a man creeping toward me as a thief creeps.
"Who comes?" I asked.
"Beauteous Queen," answered a thick voice, "it is I, Rames, the
priest."
"Speak on, Rames."
"O most fair among women, if indeed you may be named woman, hear me.
Those fools of priests and priestesses have thrown you from your
place."
"So you told me but now, Rames, nor can they be blamed."
"So I told you because I must, not of my own will, and that which is
done, cannot be undone. You are cast out and here in Kor the worship
of Isis is at an end, since who is there that can fill your throne?
Yet, hearken, hearken! I cling to you, I worship you. I desire you to
be my wife, O most lovely. Here together we will rule in Kor and you
shall be its Queen and goddess, and I will be its Captain. It is most
wise that you should consent, O Lady divine."
"Why is it wise, Rames?"
"Because, Lady, I can protect you. You know the sentence that goes out
against those who break the rule of Isis. I say that it is already
uttered against you. I say that those bigots seek to murder you. But
if you take me as husband, then we will be beforehand with them and
kill or drive them away. Yea, now that you are lonely and deserted, I
shall be your sure shield."
I heard and laughed aloud, and I think that this madman interpreted
that laugh in a strange fashion. At least he threw himself upon me. He
seized my hand and lifted it toward his lips, though by those lips it
was never touched. For now rage took hold of me, such rage as had
possessed my soul in the cave of the Fire of Life; rage and the desire
of destruction, that with other evil gifts had come to me in the
breath of the Fire.
"Accursed one!" I cried, "vile and insolent thief! Do you dare to
touch me with your hand? Away with you to Set! Let the world know you
no more!"
As the words passed my lips it seemed to me that from some strength
within a withering flame leapt out of me and smote that man as the
lightning smites. At the least he lifted his hands to his head; he
reeled back, he fell, he groaned--he died.
Looking at him lying there in the moonlight, still and bereft of life,
at the last I came to know full surely that henceforward I could slay
with a thought, that I was the Lady of Death, and that such wrath as
others express in words went forth from me with all the might of
Heaven; moreover, that now this wrath rose suddenly and swiftly in me,
easy to unchain, hard to hold. Yea, I was both a fury and a terror
whom no man might cross or vex if he would continue to look upon the
sun.
Philo came. He stared at me and at the dead Rames, then questioned me
with his eyes.
"He would have laid hands on me, Philo, and I slew him," I said.
"Then what he has earned, he has been paid," answered Philo. "Yet,
Queen, how did you slay him? I see no bruise or wound."
"By a power that has come to me, Philo. I desired him dead and he
died. That is all the tale."
"A strange and a terrible power, Queen. Often when we are angry we
wish that this one or that were dead--yet that they should forthwith
die--! Henceforth you must watch your moods well, Daughter of Wisdom,
since otherwise I think that you and I will soon be parted for, as I
know, at times you are angry with me, and when next that chances I
shall be sped."
"Aye, Philo, so I have learned. I must watch my moods very well. Yet
fear nothing, since never could I wish you dead."
"Are you sure, Ayesha? Hearken. What was the crime of this poor
wretch? Was it not that he, who hitherto had been a virtuous man, a
good and earnest priest who never turned to look at woman, of a sudden
went mad for love of you, and in his madness urged his suit--well, as
men do when they have lost hold of the reins of reason, whereon you
slew him? Now if men must die for such a crime, who is there that
would live to grow old? I think that all of them would soon be driven
to dwell in such a hermitage as that wherein the holy Noot sleeps
to-night. Is it not true? I ask you who know the world."
"It is true," I answered.
"If so, Lady, I would ask another question. What was it that sent this
man mad? Was it not the sight of such beauty as has never yet been
known upon the earth? Which beauty, Ayesha, if I look upon it much
longer, I think will send me mad also, or any other man. Daughter of
Wisdom, such loveliness as you wear to-day is the greatest curse that
the gods can grant to a woman, because being above Nature, all Nature
must obey its might. Daughter of Wisdom, henceforward you must veil
your face from the eyes of men, or become the murderess of more ill-
fated ones."
"It seems that this is so," I answered heavily. "I have desired beauty
and beauty has come to me, but however great, all gifts are not good."
"So I have heard philosophers preach in Greece, Lady, yet never did I
know one of them to turn his back on any gift. Ayesha, hide those eyes
of yours, hide them swiftly. While Rames lies there dead, love is
frightened, but once his clay is gone, who knows? But I forgot, I came
to warn you that a certain decree has been uttered against you, the
same, Queen, that you have uttered against Rames, also to protect you,
if I can."
Now I laughed outright.
"Foolish man," I said, "do you not yet understand that I cannot be
killed or even harmed?"
"Ye Gods!" said Philo, holding up his hands in amazement. Then he was
silent.
That night I slept by the cold shape of Kallikrates and oh! it was the
most fearful of all nights that ever I passed upon the earth. Evil,
very evil were the dreams that came to me, if dreams they were. In
them it seemed that Noot spoke with me. Nay, not Noot, but a
flickering tongue of fire which I knew to be the spirit of Noot.
Naught could I see save that burning tongue, and from it came terrible
words.
"Daughter," it said, "you have cast my counsels to the winds, you have
betrayed your trust, you have broken my commands that I gave to you
out of the wisdom that was given to me. You have entered the Fire that
you were set to watch. You have been embraced by the Fire and received
its gifts. Behold the first fruits of them. The man whom you would
have taken lies dead at your side, and yonder in the temple court
another lies dead also, who was good until your hell-granted beauty
made him evil. The worship of Isis is destroyed in this land that now
nevermore will become a nation great and strong and pure. The heart of
Amenartas is broken, yet she will live on to beget avengers, one of
whom will overtake you at the appointed time. In loneliness, in
remorse, in utter desolation you must endure till the Fire dies that
cannot die while the world is; seeking yet never finding, or finding
but to lose again. Henceforth you are an alien to the kindly race of
men, a beauteous terror that all must desire and yet all fear and
hate. Ever that which you seek will flit before you like a wandering
star which you may never overtake, and in following it you will bring
death to thousands. Daughter, you are accursed."
"Is there then no redemption?" I asked of Noot in my dream.
"Aye, Ayesha, when the world is redeemed, then perchance you may find
your part in that great forgiveness. Hearken. There is a vision which
throughout your life has haunted you. In that vision Aphrodite and the
evil gods, those gods that she had led into Egypt to destroy its
higher faith, were summoned before the throne of Isis. In it also a
fate and a command were laid upon you--that you should war against
those gods and bring its punishment on Egypt that received and
welcomed them."
"It is but a fantasy," I answered. "Now I know that there are no evil
gods; there lives no Aphrodite; even no Isis."
"Daughter, you err. True, there is no Isis who was shaped only by the
faith of earth and in the dreams of men. Yet there is that which they
name Isis, as the highest that they know and can fashion in their
thought. There is the eternal Good and that Good is God. Throughout
the countless ages man, warring against Nature, has lifted up his
heart till almost he seems to look upon the face of that almighty,
regnant Good. Thus it was with you, Daughter, and now wither have you
wended? You have fled down the backward path. You have undone all, you
have gone back to Nature. Henceforth you are Nature's self, shining
with her false and passing beauty, inspired with her law of death, you
who once drew near to the new law of Life that awaited you beyond the
grave, which now you may not seek."
"Whate'er I did, I did for Love and Love shall save me," I seemed to
answer in my agony.
"Aye, Ayesha, doubtless in the end Love will save you, as it saves all
things that without its grace must perish everlastingly. Yet for you
that salvation is now far away, and ere it can be found, one by one
you must conquer those passions that found you in the Fire. You who
sought undying beauty, must see your fair body more hideous and more
horrible than the leper of the streets. You who are filled with rage
and strength must grow gentle as a dove and weak as a little child. By
suffering you must learn to soothe the sufferings of others. By
expiation you must atone your crimes, by faith once more you must lift
up your soul. By the knowledge you shall win you must come to
understand your own blind pettiness through time untold. Ayesha, this
is your doom."
Such was the substance of that dream and when I awoke from it, oh! how
bitterly I wept. For now I understood. I was fallen--fallen! All that
I had gathered through the long years of prayer and abstinence and
service had been reft from me, and I who stood near to joy had sunk
into a hell of unending sorrow. There was no Isis, so I had dreamed
Noot to say, and so my new knowledge told me. Yet there was the
eternal Good which in Egypt men knew as Isis, and in other lands by
many a different name, and from that Good I was excommunicate.
Now like my savage ancestors of a million years before, I was but a
part of Nature as we see her upon the earth and feel her in our blood
and--this was the most dreadful of my punishments--my wisdom and my
lost faith had become rules by which I could mete out the measure of
my fall, for ignorance can smile at that which to knowledge is a hell.
All Nature's gifts were mine; all her beauty, all her desires, all her
fierceness, all her hates, and one by one, through countless time I
must weed her every evil growth from the garden of my poisoned soul.
The curse with which she was accursed had smitten me also, and in the
end her death would be my death. Such was the doom that I had brought
upon my head when I had listened to the calling of that god of Fire.
Oh! looking upon the cold corpse of Kallikrates and feeling the
primeval passions surging in my breast, little wonder that I, the
rejected of Heaven, wept as still I weep to-day.
For such is the lot of those who trample on all good as they run to
seize the glittering gauds that the tempter spreads before their
lusting eyes. Perchance Noot never broke his holy rest to speak to me
in dreams; perchance it was the strength in my own soul that spoke to
my heart, as that strength of which now I knew the power, in the old
days wrought marvels that then I believed to be done by the invisible
hand of Isis. At least the lesson taught is true.
CHAPTER XXV
IN UNDYING LONELINESS
Ere the dawn, guided by those old embalmers and bearing with me the
dead Kallikrates, I departed from that hateful Kor. As I think, none
saw me go, for, forgetful of their promised vengeance, the priests and
priestesses were gathered trembling about the corpse of Rames in the
inmost court of the Temple of Truth, though it is true that I felt the
baleful eyes of Amenartas watching me. Or perhaps it was her pursuing
hate I felt, and not her eyes.
Veiled so that no man might look upon my deadly beauty, I crossed the
plain and came to the vast cave-sepulchres. Here those old embalmers
lit lamps and showed me a deep and empty tomb. It had two shelves or
niches, on one of which I laid my dead, choosing the other to be my
couch. Thus then I took up my abode in the Sepulchres of Kor that for
some two thousand years were to be my home.
At my command Philo led the royal Amenartas from the haunted land of
Kor, and returning three moons later, told me, truly or not, that she
had passed the swamps and departed on a wandering ship, sailing north,
whither he knew not. I asked him no more who did not desire to learn
of her words and curses, though as it chanced this I must do after
long ages had gone by. Some of the priests and priestesses went with
her. Others remained in Kor and, if they were young enough, took wives
or husbands and ruled there. Indeed, the last of their descendants
whom I could trace before their blood was utterly swallowed up in that
of the barbarians, died after five hundred years or more had passed
away.
Philo, too, lived on at Kor, making trading journeys to the coast and
along it in his ship and grew rich and, after a fashion, great. For
Philo would never leave me whom he loved, though no more would he look
upon my unveiled face. At length, very old, he died in my arms, he who
would have none of the Fire and its gifts. When his breath left him,
for the first time since that night at Kor, I wept. For now I was
quite alone.
While he lay dying he prayed me to unveil, saying that now, when no
harm could come of it, he would look upon my face once more. I did so
and he studied me long and earnestly with his hollow eyes.
"You are wondrous beautiful," he said, "nor during these past forty
years or more, since last I beheld you unveiled in the sanctuary of
the Temple of Truth, has your loveliness lessened by one wit. Indeed,
I think that it has gathered. What is the meaning of this, fair
Daughter of Wisdom?"
"It means what I have told you before, Philo, that I do not die until
the world dies, although I may change and seem to pass away."
"Yet I die. Do we then part for ever?" he asked.
"Nay, I think not, Philo, for at last Death overtakes everything and
in its hallways we may meet again. Moreover, the world lives long and
to it, ere its end, you may return once, or often, and if so,
perchance you will be drawn to me."
"I trust so, O Wisdom's Daughter. They call you witch, and doubtless
such you are, who can slay with a glance, whom age does not touch, and
whom Death scorns. Yet, witch or woman, or both, there lives none, no,
not even wife or child, whom I so desire to meet hereafter."
So Philo died, and since those medicine-men who had embalmed
Kallikrates now were dead also, leaving behind them none who had
knowledge of their art, I buried him unpreserved in the great
sepulchres.
Awhile ago the fancy took me to go to look upon him, but alas! after
the passing of some sixteen hundred years, save for the skull, his
naked bones had crumbled into dust.
What more is there to tell? All died and came again in their children:
generation after generation of them did I watch arise, flourish in
their wild fashion, and go their way down the path of Death. I ruled
those barbarians, if rule it can be called. They were my slaves who
feared me as a spirit, and I was kind to them, but if they angered me,
then I slew them, for thus only could they be held in a due subjection
even to one that they believed to be an ancient goddess whom their
forefathers worshipped, Lulala by name, whose throne was in the moon.
For these Amahagger were a terrible people, barbarians who loved the
night because their deeds were evil, and who, if strangers wandered
among them, slew them by the setting of red-hot pots upon their heads,
and afterward ate their flesh. Yet among them were some of a nobler
sort, descended, as I think, either from the unmixed blood of the
ancients of old Kor, or perchance from those priests and priestesses
of Isis who had been my companions. Such a one was a certain Billali
whom my lord Leo and Holly knew. But for the most part they were hook-
nosed, treacherous, dark-haunting savages, and as such they must be
handled.
In the course of those long ages, to divert myself in my loneliness
and for the purposes of study, I reared certain of these savages up to
this and that. I stunted them to dwarfs, I bred them to giants.
Musicians of a kind I made of some of them, though to do so took ten
of their generations. Then I grew weary of the game and all these
variants died back into the common stock; that fundamental type to
which, if left alone, every species that springs on earth returns in
time, and this more quickly than might be thought. The last breed that
I created, or caused to create itself, was one of mutes evolved from a
faithful strain who had served me well, since I found these mutes more
docile and less wearisome than the rest.
But enough of that people with which I have done for ever.
What did I do through all those awful ages? At first, as I found I had
the power, I threw my watching eyes across the world, and learned all
that happened there. Thus I saw the battles of Alexander, his
conquests and his death, and the rise of the Ptolemies in Egypt; also
many other things in the countries with which I have had to do. But
soon I tired of it all.
Men arose of whom I knew nothing. Peoples changed, and ever the play
repeated itself afresh, though with new actors. I had naught in common
with them and their petty aims and passions, I who watched as a god
might watch those that served him not, or as an idle child watches the
labours of colony after colony of ants. Yea, I tired of them and took
no more heed of what they did or did not do upon their short journey
to that forgetfulness wherewith the dust of Time would bury them. I
was dead to the world, and the world was dead to me.
In the ages that followed I sent out my soul to seek kindred souls and
found some with whom I communed, though they never knew who it was
that talked to them. With wise men throughout the earth I held this
converse, and from them gathered knowledge, giving them in return
something of my wisdom, which doubtless they presented to the
generations as their own. If so, the world was the gainer, and if
Truth comes, what matters it whence it comes?
I did more. I sought out the dead in their habitations beyond the
stars, aye, and found not a few of them. Always they were eager to
learn of the world and in return paid me with the coin of their
unearthly lore. They told me of those other worlds and I made
acquaintance with their princes and their rulers: I gathered up the
broken fragments from the feasts that were spread upon these alien
tables and drank of the dregs of their new wine. But, and here was a
mystery, here was the grief: never once could I grasp the robe of any
whom I had known upon the earth. I found not my father, I found not
Noot, I found not Kallikrates, I found not Philo, I found not Beltis
or Amenartas. In all that countless multitude I discovered no single
soul to whom my mortal lips had spoken in its little day. Of friend or
foe I found not one. Perchance all them were still asleep and resting
in their sleep.
I looked into the secrets of Nature and they opened themselves to me
like flowers beneath the sun. I inhaled their perfume, I admired their
beauty, so that at length little was hid from me. I learned how to
turn clay to gold and how to harness the lightning to my service, aye,
and many another thing. Yet what was the use of all of it to me, the
dweller in a tomb?
Knowledge, the lord, is a barren grant unless it can also be a
servant; aye, a slave at command to work good for man.
For the rest, what could I do? Without the caves I sowed the seed of
trees. I watched them spring, I watched them grow to saplings and, in
the slow progression of the centuries, swell to great timbers with
far-reaching arms beneath whose shade I rested. Thus they stood for
many a hundred years. Then for many another hundred they decayed, grew
hollow, rotted to dust and fell, their long day done at last. And I, I
sowed me others.
To mark the passage of those years lest I should lose count of them,
in a certain cavern I laid me stones, a stone for every one as from
the hand of Time it fell ripe into the bosom of Eternity. As on their
rosaries, here and there, priests set larger beads to mark the tale of
their completed prayers, so when ten years had gone I set a larger
stone, and when a hundred had passed by, one larger yet and white in
colour, while the thousandth year I marked with a little pyramid, two
of which now stand in the Caves of Kor. It was a good plan whereby I
could reckon easily, only some of the softer stones that lay near to
the mouth of that cavern where sun and rain could reach them at length
crumbled into sand.
Why did I stay at Kor? Why did I not wander forth through the world?
Because I /could not/, because of the curse that had been laid upon
me, that here I must wait until Kallikrates came again, as come I knew
he would. Therefore no captive ever was more chained and fettered in
his dungeon than I, Ayesha, by that compelling curse in the Sepulchres
of Kor, where night by night I laid me down to rest in the cold
company of the dead. From time to time, once in a generation mayhap, I
would lift the cloths that covered him and look upon his pale beauty
(for those old embalmers did not lie), and kiss his brow of ice and
weep and weep. Then once more I laid the shroud, or a new shroud, upon
him and went my weary way.
Oh! it is terrible in this world where all is change, where even the
stones grow old and die to re-form again, to be the one thing that
changeth not for ever. Yet, that was my lot, such was the gift of the
Fire-lord whom I had wedded and embraced. There I sat in my eternal
beauty which I was doomed to hide, lest brute men should be maddened
at the sight of it, so that I must slay them with the lightning of my
will. There I brooded, gathering to my breast all that wisdom of
Mother Nature of whom now I was a part, all the useless wisdom whose
weight at length clogged my sense and cramped my soul. There I sat,
eaten of desire for one dead and burning with jealous hate of that
woman who had borne his child and who, as I knew well, wandered with
him, greater than I perhaps and still more fair, in some Elysium that
even my spirit could not reach, taking the place that I might fulfil,
if only I could attain to the boon of death which is everlastingly
denied to me, until the old world itself shall die. There, I say, I
sat while the slow fire of the torturer Time, burning in my breast,
ate its path through all my being, till the hot soul within me turned
to the bitter ash of hopelessness.
Oh! why did he not come? Why did he not come? Surely the circle must
be complete and the time fulfilled. Surely he must be weary of those
unknown heavenly fields and of the coarse love of Egypt's Lady. Surely
he would come and soon. Only then, what if here, as there, she still
companioned him?
At length one came, and when I learned of it my heart flamed up with
hope as a torch flames in these dark caves. Alas! it was not he. So
soon as my eyes fell on him afar, I knew it, yonder in the temple of
Kor whither I had gone upon the matters of some petty savage trouble,
such as had arisen thrice since the days of Philo. I saw and grew sick
with hope destroyed, so sick that had he but known it, this little,
wizened wanderer at that moment stood near to the world's edge. Yet
afterward I came to like him well, perchance because he reminded me so
much of Philo that once or twice almost I thought----But let this
matter be.
He was a strange man, that wanderer; very shrewd, but one who believed
nothing which he could not see or touch or handle. Thus when I told
him tales concerning myself and my length of days and why I sat at Kor
in beauty, yet like one who is dead in a desert, openly he mocked at
them, which angered me. Not all of these were true, be it admitted,
because, being a part of Nature as I am, how can I always speak the
truth?
Nature shows many faces to those who court her; Nature has desert-
phantasies wherewith the traveller is oft deceived, thinking he sees
that which he does not see, though in some shape or form of a surety
it exists elsewhere. Nature also keeps her secrets close and ever
instructs in parables that yet hold the seed of perfect verity.
So, being a part of Nature's self, did I with that wanderer, as indeed
I do to this day with Holly the learned, who followed after him. Yet
here the example has its flaw, for this man who was called Watcher-in-
the-Night, a name that fitted him well enough, did not court me, as
her watchers court Nature the beautiful. Nay, he turned his back upon
me saying he was not one who loved, moth-like, to singe his wings in a
flame, however bright; I think because often he had singed them
already.
Still, I found this so strange that almost I began to wonder whether
once more my beauty was on the wane and whether it needed longer to be
hidden beneath a veil, or whether perchance men had grown wiser than
they used to be. Therefore, once for a little moment I put out my
strength and brought him to his knees and having taught him certain
lessons, I laughed at him and let him go. Yet be it said that I held
and hold him dear, and look onward to the day when we shall meet
again, as perchance we have met in those that are long past. So enough
of this brave and honest man, gently born also, and instructed in his
fashion. Doubtless he died many years ago.
I tire of this long, sad task; let the end of my tale be short.
At last, at last, came Kallikrates reborn, lacking memories, changed
in spirit, and yet in face and form the very same. Holly brought him
hither, or he brought Holly, because of an ancient, lying screed that
Amenartas wrote upon a sherd, which from age to age had passed down in
his race, urging some descendant of her blood to find me out and slay
me, for this Egyptian fool thought that I could be slain.
He came, and by Heaven! I knew not that he was here until the crabbed
Holly led me to the couch whereon he lay fever-stricken and at the
very point of death. By my arts I dragged him back from between those
doors of doom, that almost once again had closed behind him, and
afterward, revealing to him my beauty and my burning love, caused him
to worship me. Yet, mark! He came not alone; as I feared would chance,
something of Amenartas prisoned in a savage woman's breast came with
him, and already he was her lover.
I slew that woman who was obstinate and would not leave him; though
the deed grieved me, I slew her because I must. It mattered little,
for soon she was forgot, and I held him fast.
Of the rest little need be said, for Holly knows it all and tells me
that he has written it in a book. Because I might not wed with mortal
man I led Kallikrates, he who now was known as Leo, down the perilous
ways to that hid cavern where ever the bright Spirit of Life, clad in
flame and thunder, marches on his endless round. Behold! as it had
been over two thousand years before, so it was now. Again Kallikrates
feared to enter the flames and, putting on majesty, to become undying
king of all the world. Aye, even though the prize of my glory lay to
his hand, his flesh shrank from the Fire.
Therefore that he might learn courage, once more I gave myself to the
embrace of the god, and lo! this time he slew me. Yes, in utter shame
and hideousness before my lover's eyes, there I died, or rather seemed
to die; an ancient, shrivelled, ape-like thing. Yet dying, my
unconquered spirit gave me strength to mutter in his ear that I should
come again and once more be beautiful.
Nay, I did not die. Far away again I became incarnate in this distant
Asian land, which after all is my own, since in a part of it first I
saw the light. Here in this cavern-monastery where still lingers some
shadow of the worship of the moon and of the great Principle that in
the old days was named Isis, Queen of Heaven, once more I was clothed
with mortal flesh.
The years went by, but two or three of them, and I found the power to
search out Kallikrates, or Leo Vincey, still living on the earth, and
in a vision showed him the mountains that I inhabit. He was faithful.
Yes, like Holly he was faithful, and together they followed that
vision. For twice ten years they searched, and then at last they found
me. They passed the perils and the tests; Kallikrates, or Leo Vincey,
escaped the web spun by the Queen Atene, she in whom Amenartas once
more shows herself upon the earth. They endured the appointed trials.
Aye, when I unveiled before him on the mountain peak, my Love, my
eternal Love, my doom and my desire, found strength and faith to kiss
my hideous, withered brow. Then was that faith rewarded. Then before
his very eyes I changed into the flower of all beauty, into the glory
of all power, and he worshipped, worshipped, worshipped!
Now soon we shall be wed. Now soon the curse shall fall from us, like
to a severed chain. Now soon my sin will be forgiven, and side by side
we shall tread the endless path of splendour, no longer two but one,
that path which leads through perfect joy--oh! whither does it lead?
Even to-day I know not.
But this cannot be yet awhile. First he must bathe him in the Fire,
since mortal man may not mix with my immortality and live as man. For
while this world endures--have I not said it?--I who have drunk of the
very Cup of its Spirit, aye, twice drunk deep, must also endure, and I
think the world is still far away from the gates of Death. Aye, though
I change a thousand times, still I shall be the same in other shapes,
and though I seem to vanish, yet I must appear again.
Where I go, also, thither Kallikrates must follow me, or I must follow
him, since he and I are one, and on me is laid the burden of the
uplifting of the soul of him whose body once I slew.
And yet, and yet--oh! he is still human and death dogs the heels of
man. As I write a horror seizes me. Aye, my hand trembles on the
scroll and my spirit quakes. What if some chance, some sickness, some
fate should strike him down, leaving me once more desolate and
divorced, so that elsewhere all this dark tragedy must be played
afresh?
Away with that hell-born thought! There are no gods and, Fate, I defy
thee who am myself a Fate and thine equal. I will conquer thee, O
Fate; thou shalt not conquer me. There is naught but that eternal Good
whereof the fiery tongue which was the soul of Noot spoke, or seemed
to speak, to me in my haunted sleep at Kor, and to that Good I,
Ayesha, make my prayer.
Lo! I have suffered. Lo! I have paid the count to its last coin. Lo! I
have endured. Through the long ages I have sown in tears, and my hour
of harvest is at hand; aye, the night of sorrow dies, and already on
the peak of heavenly Peace shines the dawn of joy. . . . My lord hunts
upon the mountain after the fashion of men, and I brood within the
caves after the fashion of women. . . .
". . . Holly, Holly! Awake! Look yonder! What is this? I seem to see
my lord struggling on the snow and the spotted beast has him by the
throat--. . ."
Here ends Ayesha's manuscript. Its last words are almost illegible
and are written by one whose agitation was evidently great; indeed
their appearance suggests that they were set down in some half-
automatic fashion while the writer's mind was occupied with other
matters. With them Ayesha ends her tale of which in outline the
rest is to be found elsewhere--in the book that is named after
her. Suddenly she appears to have tired of her task. Perhaps,
heralded and induced by the incident of the snow-leopard that went
near to ending the life of Leo Vincey, the presage of terrible
woes to come, to which she alludes and not obscurely, paralyzed
Ayesha's mind or filled it with forebodings that rendered her
incapable of further effort of the kind, or at least unwilling to
endure its labour, of which, it is clear, already she was
wearying.
Editor.
THE END